The Paradox
by Zeria
Summary: Sequel to New Beginnings (Not necessary to read that one first though): Chris has been starting to remember events from the unchanged timeline. One day in 2026, he vanishes without a trace. What happened to Chris, and how will his loved ones cope with the idea he may be destined to die when he turns 23? How will the Underworld use it to their advantage?
1. As Time Goes By

The Paradox

Disclaimer: I only own the ones you haven't heard of before.

AN: So, it's been seven years since I wrote fanfiction but this story has been rattling around in my head the whole time, and I can't ignore it anymore. This first chapter is more of a prologue, just catching up on what the characters have been up to and preparing for the meat of the story. If anyone actually reads this after all this time, I hope you enjoy it!

2022

In his eighteen years of life, Chris Halliwell had witnessed and accomplished many incredible feats. Coming from a long line of powerful witches, magic was literally all around him from the moment he opened his eyes for the first time. With his half-whitelighter side, he was able to travel anywhere in this world and through several other planes of existence in the blink of an eye. He'd participated in fighting evil and saving innocent lives from a very young age. He had already experienced several great loves, though of varying natures. None of that compared to the joy and excitement and pride he felt right now as he watched his almost year old son, Lucky, pull himself up on the edge of the sofa and turn to take his first steps.

" _Mira, Mira,_ " the boy's mother, Casey, excitedly whispered, lightly hitting Chris' arm repeatedly from her spot on the floor next to him. The petite woman was practically bouncing, causing her long mahogany hair to swing in the high ponytail she had it in.

Chris rolled his light green eyes from behind the camera on his phone. "What do you think I'm doing?" He peeked over the top of the screen to give a big smile to his son. "Come here, Buddy. You can do it. Just let go."

Chris' girlfriend, Molly, who was sitting on his other side couldn't decide whether she was enjoying watching the soon to be toddler with his big, mostly toothless smile as he bounced in anticipation of moving, or his parents, who were wearing identical goofy faces as they tried almost desperately to lure him over to them. She smiled softly, true contentment filling her. She never would have thought even a year and a half ago she could be this happy. She and Chris had been through so much in the last two years. She had died to fulfill her role as a whitelighter. Neither of them had any idea if or when they'd ever be able to see one another again. During their separation, Chris had been devastated, left broken and in more pain than he could handle. One night he'd turned to his childhood friend for comfort, and their lives were changed forever when they discovered Casey was pregnant.

Molly turned to look at the other woman, almost laughing at how wildly different their relationship was now compared to when they first met. She had loathed the tiny latina with every fiber of her being. She'd said horrible things to her. She'd even used her morning sickness to torture her on several occasions. Over time, Molly realized the other woman wasn't a threat. Chris loved Casey but wasn't in love with her. His heart truly belonged to Molly. Once Molly felt secure in her place in his life she was able to see Casey not as some manipulator who seduced her grieving boyfriend, but as a girl who had lost her father and was also in pain. She was a scared, somewhat damaged teenager who had made a bad decision. She'd been able to accept Casey in her life then, and friendship quickly blossomed. The two women were practically inseparable these days.

Casey reached her hands out to the little boy, "Come here, _Lucerito_. Come to Momma."

Lucky released his hold on the sofa and took one wobbly step forward with his pudgy little leg, his arms out in front of him like a miniature zombie.

"Keep talking," Chris urged.

"Come here, _Mijo_. You can do it. Yes, you can. Oh, look at you, so big. You're such a big boy. Yes, you are."

The toddler's round face lit up at the sound of her voice, his green eyes dancing as he gave a high-pitched squeal of excitement before quickly teetering toward her, losing his balance and falling into her lap. Casey picked him up into the air giving him an excited wiggle before pulling him back down to her and kissing his chubby cheeks repeatedly.

"Six steps," Chris said proudly. "First time out of the gate and he did six whole steps."

"Did you get it?" Molly asked, trying to get a glimpse at his phone. When he handed it to her, she hit play and watched the whole scene over again. "I told you he was gifted. Look at this. He's a baby genius."

"Takes after me," Chris said, plucking his son from the mother's arms and tossing him up into the air and catching him, causing the little boy to giggle.

Casey quirked a brow, "Really? From you, huh?"

Chris flashed her a roguish grin in response. A throw pillow hit him in the face a moment later, causing Lucky to squeal with delight. Chris tickled him as he asked, "Whose side are you on?"

As Molly rose to join her boyfriend in celebrating the big moment, Casey caught Chris' older brother, Wyatt, suddenly leaning against the doorframe to the conservatory watching with a strange look in his normally bright, cerulean eyes. It wasn't the first time Casey had caught him looking on scenes like these with a guard up. She'd discovered too late which Halliwell brother she was truly in love with, not realizing her feelings for Wyatt until she was already pregnant with Lucky. While he still wanted to be with her, their relationship had not been nearly as easy or stable as Molly and Chris'. It seemed like one of them was always doing something to mess it up.

Casey put a big smile on her face and got to her feet, jogging over to her boyfriend. She greeted him with a chaste kiss. "Hey, you. When did you get here?"

"Little while ago," he answered vaguely, not really looking at her.

"Did you see? Lucky took his first steps."

Wyatt nodded.

Chris glanced over at his friend and sibling and noted the uncomfortable way they were interacting. He looked to Molly for clarification, but his girlfriend merely shrugged, clearly not knowing any more than he did, and returned her attentions to Lucky, snatching him from his father to bounce him playfully on her hip. Chris kept a watchful eye on the other couple suddenly worried.

"Something wrong?" Casey asked her boyfriend, frowning in concern.

Wyatt seemed to snap out of his fog at her question, his eyes clearing to their normal sunny disposition. "No. Everything's good." He looked over her head toward his little brother, "That's exciting – about squirt, I mean. He's growing up so fast."

"You're telling me," Chris said. "It's all a blur at this point."

Molly smiled sweetly over at the blond man. "Chris and Casey were going to whip up something for supper soon. Are you staying?"

"I can't. I promised Dad I would help with one of the advanced magic classes at magic school tonight. The normal teacher is out sick, and he and mom have that fundraiser with Aunt Phoebe tonight."

Casey bit her lower lip, seemingly nervous. Her voice came out unsure as she asked, "Will I see you later?"

The last of the tension in him faded as Wyatt looked down on her lovingly and cupped the side of her face with his hand. He gently stroked her cheek with his thumb. "Absolutely."

She smiled brightly. "Good. I miss you."

Wyatt bent to give her a feather light kiss, pausing after to look deeply into her eyes. "I love you. I'll orb back after class."

"I love you too."

"Molly, Chris," Wyatt acknowledged before going up in a swirl of bright white and blue lights.

The smile on Casey's face fell and she let out a frustrated breath, muttering to herself in Spanish. When she turned around it was to find Chris staring at her, arms folded over his chest and looking irritated. Molly was also staring, but her face held only compassion and confusion. Casey asked, dryly, "Caught the tension, did you?"

"What's going on now?" Chris asked, clearly annoyed.

"Chris," Molly chastised. She then turned to the other woman. "But really, what is going on?"

Casey hugged herself, not meeting their gazes. While it hadn't been confirmed in any way, she knew what was wrong. She'd known for a while, but had no idea what to do about it. She also knew Chris was going to be furious at the very suggestion, and she definitely didn't want the brothers at odds. It was rare for them to fight, but when they did, it was brutal for all parties.

"Case, spill."

"I think," she started, slowly lifting her brown eyes to meet her friend's green, "he has a problem with Lucky."

Suddenly, Lucky's toy truck and several stuffed animals went flying into the wall, which made Molly jump, Lucky giggle and Casey sigh.

Chris' voice was low as he asked, "He said that?"

"No, but he never interacts with him. Never talks to him or holds him or acknowledges him unless prompted."

Molly, trying to pacify the situation, argued, "But, Wyatt took care of him all the time when he was little. He'd give him bottles and change him and rock him to sleep. It's his nephew. He loves Lucky."

"He does love him," Casey agreed. "I know without a doubt he'd die for that little boy, but at the same time. . .I think seeing Lucky kills Wyatt a little bit." She caught Chris' gaze and explained, "It was easy to forget when Lucky was little, just a sweet little bundle of vague features, but the older he gets. . ."

Realization hit Chris and he swallowed thickly, his face falling. "He looks like me but with your smile."

"A living reminder of what you and I did," Casey affirmed.

Chris turned to cast a guilty look at Molly, and felt comforted by the warm, gentle smile she gave in return. He smiled weakly back, conveying his gratitude for the millionth time about her saint-like attitude about the situation he'd put them all in. He then returned his attention to Casey. "So what are you going to do?"

"I love Wyatt, but if he can't get over this. . ." Casey pursed her lips, the pain evident in her features. "I can't be with someone who can't stand spending time with my son. Lucky comes first in my life. Always and forever."

Molly watched as Chris moved to wrap his friend in a tight hug, offering what little comfort he could. The whole scene brought Molly back to a warning she'd gotten from Lucky's future self when he'd come to the past last year. He'd told her four years from now, Chris was going to vanish and under no circumstances was she to let Casey go after him as she would accidentally change the future in some very negative ways. The young man had told her the key was in keeping Wyatt and Casey together and in love, and he'd charged Molly with making sure it happened. Based on the current situation, Molly was fairly certain the future was doomed.

2023

Life had been hectic for Wyatt Halliwell. Ever since he turned 21 he'd been officially handed Excaliber and his destiny as the new King Arthur had begun. When he was younger he'd tried not to think about it much. He already felt like the weight of the world was on his shoulders as the most powerful witch to ever live, but to also have to rule over the magical community? It was enough to suffocate him. Unfortunately, the time had come to face it as reality.

It was only 7:30 in the morning when he orbed back to the manor after officiating the coronation of the new fairy queen, Thistle. Unfortunately for him, the actual ceremony didn't even get started until midnight, and Casey had an early morning of work and couldn't come with him. It was a shame. He felt like they hardly saw each other these days. His schedule was full from college and magical obligations and all her time was either spent helping Chris run their catering company or taking care of Lucky. He felt a pang run through him. No matter how much he wanted to be with her, it seemed like something was always keeping them apart.

Maybe his difficult love life was the reason he'd indulged in a bit too much to drink last night. He'd learned quickly fairies make some very potent wine. So much so, he couldn't orb straight for a few hours; otherwise, he would have tried to slip away before now. Who knew beings of such innocence could party with such enthusiasm?

Nursing a bit of a hangover, Wyatt walked into the kitchen to scrounge for food when he found his little brother with his nephew. Lucky was in his high chair, happily using his fork to shoot what appeared to be scrambled eggs at his father, who had fallen asleep in the chair next to him. Chris' face was planted on the table top as he softly snored, and his shaggy, chestnut colored hair was currently riddled with egg particles.

A large smile on his face, Wyatt moved over to Chris, putting a hand gently on his shoulder. "Chris?"

His sibling jerked upright, his green eyes searching around aimlessly for a minute before he realized where he was. He blinked hard before focusing on Wyatt. His voice was still husky with sleep. "Wy, hey. What're you doin' up? Did we wake you?"

"No, I had Thistle's coronation last night."

Chris raised his eyebrows. "And you're just back now?"

Wyatt shrugged. He was too focused on his kid brother's exhausted appearance to answer. Chris was pale, big bags under his eyes, which were glazed over and a bit red. He frowned as he took it in. "You look like hell."

"Yeah, well, the tiny human thinks five in the morning is a good time to play." Chris noticed his son struggling to reach his milk glass and automatically handed it to him. He then leaned back in his chair, returning his attention to his brother. "I've been on Lucky duty the last few nights since Case has been taking extra shifts at the restaurant and prepping for that family reunion brunch today. He's going through a bit of a sleep regression at the moment, so he's been waking up at night again and getting up really early."

"Sleep regression?" Wyatt questioned.

Chris waved him off. "Something I read about online. Anyway, between him not wanting to sleep much and a darklighter stopping by for a visit at two this morning-"

"-Darklighter?" Wyatt asked, worried. "Are you okay?"

"I'm sitting here aren't I?"

"Why didn't you call me? What if you had been shot?"

"You sound like Dad. I've been fighting evil since I was two, Wy. I can handle a lousy darklighter." He shook his head in frustration, but stopped to frown in confusion as a piece of egg fell down onto the table in front of him. He reached up to pull a larger chunk out. He shot a look to his son who was squishing the left overs between his fingers and babbling happily to himself. "God my life is glamorous."

Wyatt laughed, pulling up a seat next to him. "Where are Mom and Dad? Or Molly? Doesn't she normally help watch him so you can get a break?"

"I try not to bother Mom and Dad if I can help it. They already went through this with us. It's not fair to them. As for Molly, she got a new charge, and apparently, the guy is pretty clueless. He's been calling a lot. Always taking on more than he can handle."

"Hmm, that sounds familiar," Wyatt teased, a grin forming.

"Shut up."

Wyatt stole a pancake from the pile Chris had made and left in the middle of the table. After taking a big bite, chewing only slightly before swallowing he commented, "I'm surprised the Elders gave her another charge. I would've thought with Lucky having such a huge destiny they'd want her attention all on him."

Chris had risen to get a third cup of coffee and got down another mug for his brother. As he filled them both, he answered, "Dad was the whitelighter to the Charmed Ones, and he had other charges. Hell, even when I was their whitelighter they tried to get me to take on another witch."

Wyatt's head whipped around in shock. He stared at the back of his brother's head for a moment. He numbly questioned, "What did you just say?"

"Dad had other charges," he repeated turning around and offering him the mug. When the blond kept staring at him he frowned. "What?"

Wyatt knew about the other timeline. He didn't know all the details, but he knew enough to be concerned. When he started getting nightmares about it, he'd spent months trying to uncover as much as he could. He knew his brother had died to save him. He'd been so terrified of it happening again, he'd tried to push his little brother away, hoping maybe if he hated him Chris wouldn't want to save him anymore, and history wouldn't repeat itself. In the end, he'd realized if it was Chris' destiny, he wouldn't interfere. The other Chris had made the ultimate sacrifice to save their family. Wyatt wouldn't risk wasting that sacrifice by changing anything. Still, hearing his brother start to say things he couldn't possibly know. . .it was like a cold blade had slipped into his gut. The fear of losing his brother was so intense in these moments he couldn't breathe. They were becoming more frequent each year, but Chris didn't ever seem to notice when it happened.

"Wyatt?" Chris asked again.

Wyatt shook his head trying to clear it. "Sorry, just spaced out. Too much fairy wine, you know? Straight to the head."

Chris set the mug of coffee down on the table in front of his sibling, looking the picture of disbelief but said nothing. Then he yawned, hard.

"I could watch Lucky for a bit if you want to rest," the older brother said.

To his shock, his sibling actually snorted at the offer.

Wyatt frowned. "What?"

"You never watch him," Chris said, the hint of bitterness unmistakable. He finished harshly, "You can't stand being around him."

The mighty Twice Blessed Witch, reincarnation of King Arthur, flinched. His blue eyes were soft and hurt as he looked at his kid brother. "I love Lucky, Chris. He's your son. How could I not? I've watched him plenty of times."

Chris noted the hurt look in his brother's face and let out a breath. "Sorry. Forget it. I'm just really tired."

"No, you meant it. Why though? Why do you think that?"

Just then the toddler in question began to whine, holding his arms up. Chris unlatched the tray to the highchair and picked him up, groaning as he realized he forgot to clean Lucky up first and now found his own shirt covered in milk, eggs and applesauce remnants. He looked down at himself and grumbled, "Great. Can I get through one day without being covered in food? Just one."

Wyatt moved to the sink to get a washcloth, handing it to his brother. As the younger man worked to clean himself and his child, Wyatt patiently waited for an explanation. When he didn't get one, he said, "I've been busy, you know. What with the whole being ruler of the magical world thing. And demon attacks. And college."

"Whatever," Chris muttered.

"Not whatever," Wyatt countered. "Tell me what's going on."

Chris shifted his son to one side, regarding his brother carefully. He wet his lips nervously before finally answering, "You're jealous. Casey and I have a child together, and he looks just like me."

"He has her smile," Wyatt argued. He smiled softly at the small boy. "And her coloring. The eyes are definitely yours." He returned his focus to his brother. "I'm not jealous. I was at first but not now. Not after everything we've all been through. It's just. . ."

"Just what?"

Wyatt shrugged. "Sometimes I feel like an interloper. There are these moments when you two are enjoying some special moment with him, and I feel like I don't belong. It's like you have your own little, normal family, and I don't want to ruin it. It's going to be hard enough for the poor kid as it is – his mom is dating his uncle. Not to mention his future version kind of hated me."

"You're not intruding, Wy," Chris argued, firmly. "You're his family. You're my brother, and I want you to be part of my son's life." He added pointedly, "So does Casey."

"Is that why she's been pulling away the last six months? She thinks I have something against Lucky?"

Chris shrugged. "Can you blame her?" When he noticed his sibling's downcast face, he added, "There's still time. Show her she's wrong. Now would be a great time to start. I'm exhausted."

Just as Wyatt looked up, he was handed his squirming nephew. He blinked in shock. "What do I do?"

"He'll need to be changed soon," Chris said backing away with a mischievous grin. "Oh, and he's really into orb and go seek. Have fun."

"Chris," Wyatt called after him, feeling a little panicked. His brother kept walking away. "Chris!"

Lucky looked up at his uncle with dancing green eyes and smiled brightly before promptly orbing away.

2024

Molly watched Chris from her spot on the sofa up in the attic as he flipped through the pages of the Book of Shadows, an irritated scowl on his face. She couldn't help but smile given the reason for his annoyed disposition. She tilted her head to the side finally venturing, "It's already over. Why exactly are you looking through the book?"

"It comforts me," Chris answered without looking up.

"It was just a little spell."

Jade eyes shot up to her face, clearly not pleased with her statement. "My son turned a kid into a lizard."

Molly laughed (not for the first time today), earning an even sharper glare from her partner. She bit her lip, trying to look contrite. "Lucky was just defending his friend. That other kid was a biter."

"A lizard," Chris repeated.

"You fixed it. I used my whitelighter dust to change the memories. Magic wasn't exposed and everyone is fine."

"Not fine. How do I teach a three year old the wiccan rede?" He slammed shut the cover of the Book of Shadows. "You know, I knew he was powerful. I knew that based on the prophecy and all, but this is ridiculous. He's three, and he's got more powers than I do. How am I supposed to do this? What were the powers that be thinking? They should have made him Wyatt's."

Molly, knowing her boyfriend like the back of her hand, knew to ride out the ranting. She sat patiently on the sofa, arms folded, watching him begin to pace back and forth.

"Casey loves Wyatt," Chris went on. "It would have been perfect. They could be a happy little family, and Wyatt could teach him all about being all powerful, since I have no clue what _that's_ like. I'm just your run of the mill, mediocre witch. It's not like I didn't have an inferiority complex with Wyatt already, but now my own kid is more powerful than I am?"

The whitelighter frowned. "Since when have you ever had an inferiority complex with Wyatt?"

Chris didn't seem to hear her. He flopped down on the couch next to her. "I'm going to fail him. Lucky deserves the best."

Sensing the time was right, Molly turned to the man she loved and put a hand to his face, getting him to look at her. "He already has the best. You are an incredible dad, and Casey is a great mom. She's already explaining the wiccan rede to him as we speak, and she can always get through to him. Not to mention, he's got an Uncle who adores him, grandparents who spoil him rotten and a horde of other family who would do anything for him. Also, a pretty great whitelighter if I say so myself," she added with a twinkle in her eye.

Chris gave her a half-smile. "I'm over-reacting?"

"A tish."

He let out a breath, gazing into her hazel eyes and feeling all the fear and stress melt out of him. "I don't want what happened to Wyatt to happen to Lucky. The Cleaners erased him. No one remembered he existed. What if Lucky makes a magical mess and the same thing happens to him?"

"Obviously your parents fixed what happened to Wyatt since he's still here, and we would too."

Chris nodded, absorbing her words. After a moment he confessed, "I don't know how Mom did it. Two magical kids, and she managed a lot of the early stuff on her own. I have a ton of help, and I still feel like I'm drowning." His voice grew soft, his eyes dropping to his hands. "I don't think I'm very good at this."

"Look at me," his girlfriend ordered gently. Once he reluctantly lifted his eyes, she continued, "You are a great father. You love your son like crazy. You always put his needs first. That little boy adores you. Half the battle is just being there for your kids, and you always will be."

"Yeah, I would never bail on him," Chris agreed, a sudden darkness in his eyes. "Not like Leo."

Molly's brows furrowed in confusion. "Leo left you guys? When?"

Just then Wyatt came in holding Lucky's hand, Casey trailing after the two, drawing the other pair's attention. The little boy looked incredibly nervous as he entered the attic, his green eyes focused on the floor.

Wyatt gently nudged him forward. "Go on, Kiddo. Tell your Dad what you told me and your mom."

Lucky looked up through thick brown bangs. His tiny voice came out in a rush. "I sorry, Daddy, I didn' mean to make Harry a lizard. He was mean to Joey, and I got real mad, and it was a acci. . .acci. . ." he looked back to his mom for help.

"Accident," she reminded him.

"Acci-dent," he repeated. His lower lip stuck out pitifully, his green eyes glistening as he said softly, "You still mad?"

Chris' chest constricted at the sight of his little boy so upset. He rushed to kneel in front of him pulling him into a tight hug. The little boy started to cry, and Chris stroked his hair gently. "Hey, it's ok. You don't need to cry. It's alright. I believe you didn't mean to. I'm sorry I got mad earlier." He pulled back to look at the tear stained face of his son. He gently wiped away the last few drops and smiled lovingly. "Having magic powers is hard. I know sometimes accidents happen. Just as long as you know it's not ok to hurt people with magic on purpose. Not ever."

Lucky nodded. "Momma said we help not hurt."

"Yeah, well, your momma is pretty smart," Chris said, shooting a grateful look up to Casey.

His best friend had been so much calmer about this than he'd been. He didn't know what it was about the incident to make him freak out so much. He just kept worrying about all the possible terrible things it could imply. The cleaners taking his son had been one fear, but deep down, he'd had another darker thought. What if Lucky kept using his powers to hurt others and eventually turned evil?

It was ridiculous. Lucky was just a child, and it was an innocent mistake. Besides, Halliwells were always paragons of good. . .right? For some reason his eyes drifted to his older brother just then, and a cold knot twisted in his stomach.

2025

"You look ridiculous," Chris laughed, earning a jab in the ribs from his girlfriend. He rolled his eyes, "Oh come on. Casey is dressed like a wood nymph. The girl who hates frills and asked for leather and biker boots when we were shopping for maternity clothes has a flower wreath in her hair and a flowing dress and no shoes."

Molly rolled her eyes at him. "Stop giving her grief. It's not like she picked it out." She turned to her friend, questioning, "You really couldn't wear something else, right?"

Casey glared at both of them, her coffee eyes narrowing sharply. "It's the annual spring festival, and they asked Wyatt to bless their festivities. Unfortunately, anyone in attendance has to conform to their rituals, including dress."

As her wreath tilted and pushed her hair into her face, Chris bit back another bought of laughter as both women shot him looks. He held up his hands. "Okay, but seriously, this is not you. Can we acknowledge that, please?"

"It sucks, okay?" Casey agreed. "I look like a flake, and the stupid flowers itch, and I hate walking barefoot, but even more than this absurd get-up I hate all these ceremonies and rituals. Every time Wyatt and I finally get a night to ourselves, he gets summoned for something like this. I really want to be supportive of his magical destiny, but it's getting out of hand. There's always something. It never stops."

Molly softly questioned, "Have you talked to Wyatt about it?"

Casey shook her head and shrugged. "What can I say? It's not like he can stop being King Arthur. He didn't choose this either."

Chris folded his arms over his chest, studying his friend with a knowing eye. "There's more. What aren't you saying?"

"It's just. . ." she looked sheepish, her cheeks turning red. "They always call me Guinevere."

Molly frowned, not following. "Who does?"

"The entire freaking magical community," Casey spat. "Every time I go to one of these things with him, they all stare at me and whisper and judge and they always, always call me Guinevere."

"You did have a kid with Lancelot," Chris pointed out. Off her angry look, "Just saying."

Casey flopped down on the white loveseat in the conservatory, head in her hands. "I wasn't with Wyatt then. I never cheated on him. I never would. The original Guinevere had an all-out affair with Lancelot. For years, they snuck around behind Arthur's back. She literally destroyed Camelot, and that's how they see me. Everyone in the magical community thinks I'm a cheating, Camelot-ruining whore."

Molly shot her boyfriend a look, taken back by the outburst. Molly had always been envious of the other woman's confidence and ability to ignore what others thought. Being overweight her whole life, Molly had only recently gained that kind of strength. To hear her friend suddenly so hurt by the judgment of others made her both shocked and angry. She moved to sit next to Casey. "If people really think that they're idiots. Wyatt knows the truth, and he's Arthur's reincarnation, and the love of your life, so isn't that all that really matters?"

The other woman nodded, giving a small smile. "Yeah, you're right. I shouldn't let it get to me. I'm doing this for Wyatt. He doesn't like these events any more than I do. I just need to support him."

"There ya go," Molly said, giving her a brilliant smile. "Just keep focusing on him and how crazy he is about you."

"Speaking of which," Chris gestured to the column of orb lights floating down from the ceiling.

Wyatt was dressed in a loose fitting white cotton shirt with billowing sleeves that was tucked into tight brown leather pants. He turned a death look to his sibling who was struggling for all he was worth not to laugh. "Don't start or I swear I bring out photos from the time you were turned into a girl."

Chris' face fell and he ran a hand through his hair nervously as Molly quirked a brow in question. "I don't know what he's talking about."

Getting a little pay back of her own, Casey said, "You know I actually remember that. We were thirteen, and there was a demon hunting girls in our junior high, and Chris, here, thought he could handle it on his own, so he cast a spell to draw the demon to him, and it backfired." She smirked, "Christine, wasn't' it?"

"I hate you both."

Everyone else burst into laughter.

Chris folded his arms and glared at the mother of his child and his brother. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"Actually yes," The Twice Blessed said with a wrinkle of his nose. He offered his hand to Casey. "Ready, M'lady?" He wiggled his eyebrows playfully, getting a smile from her as she took his hand. He gave a slight bow to the other two before he and Casey went up in a swirl of light.

Chris moved to sit next to Molly on the loveseat. "Dad is watching Lucky tonight, which means you and I have the whole evening all to ourselves." He smiled suggestively, "Whatever will we do to pass the time?"

Molly feigned ignorance, shrugging slightly. "Gosh. I just can't think of anything."

"Maybe this will inspire you." He slipped his hand behind her head, pulling her in for a passionate kiss, the couple disappearing in their own swirl of lights as he transported them to his room. As they landed on his bed, he lightly pushed her silky black hair from her face before asking, "Got any ideas yet?"

Grinning at him, her hazel eyes sparkling, she returned, "Well, I'm sure I can come up with something."

Pushing him to his back she sidled up next to him, running her hands through his shaggy chestnut hair while she kissed him with a love most people never feel. She moved to nibble his ear and then lightly suck on the tender flesh behind it then left a hot trail of kisses down his neck. She inhaled sharply as his hands ran up her sides, caressing her before slowly, teasingly undoing the buttons of her shirt one at a time. She returned to claim his mouth while her hands worked on his pants. Soon they were both absorbed in their love making falling into the dance they'd done so many times before. They knew all each other's moves by heart, but it never felt any less passionate or loving than the first time. When it was done, Molly lay in her lover's arm feeling safe and loved and beautiful.

Chris, half-asleep, gently stroked her hair, murmuring, "I love you so much."

"I love you too," Molly returned, running her finger along his bare chest. "I always have, and I always will."

Little did she know what Chris had already started planning for their future. And what a future it would be.

TBC. . .


	2. Change

Thanks to both of you that reviewed the first part. I'm a review junkie, so your words encouraged me to get this up quickly.

Chapter 2

Change

2026

Wyatt Halliwell was lying across the bed in his apartment, propped up on one elbow watching the love of his life scurrying around the room looking for the various articles of clothing he'd removed from her person forty minutes ago. She'd just plucked her jeans from a chair and had slid them back on and now was hunting for her white camisole. He smiled softly, watching as she wrinkled her nose in agitation and flipped upside down to check under the bed. He heard a victorious 'aha' before her head popped back up, and she tossed her shirt back on. She then snatched her shoes from the middle of the floor before taking a seat at the end of the bed to work on them next.

During these rare moments when it was just the two of them, Wyatt felt an almost surreal happiness and peace come over him. They'd both been through so much to get to this point. They'd hurt each other deeply in the past, and some of the wounds had left scars on their relationship still present today. Still, he knew with every fiber of his being, he would love this woman to his dying day, and the fact she was here with him and loved him in return felt too good be true.

Sensing him watching her, Casey turned around to give him an exasperated smile. "Would you stop staring?"

"Never," he answered, moving to wrap his arms around her from behind. He slowly kissed the crook of her neck, teasing the sensitive spots on her throat until she let out a little moan. Encouraged, he pulled her down, positioning himself above her. He captured her mouth with his, while his hands started sliding her shirt up, caressing her stomach and inching toward her chest.

With a frustrated groan, Casey gently pushed him away and pulled down her shirt. "Wyatt. . ."

"Stay," he whispered, huskily, his normally bright blue eyes dark with desire. He pulled her into another kiss, and felt immense satisfaction when her body seemed to instinctively melt into his own.

To his disappointment, the embrace only lasted a moment before she pushed him back again, slipping through his arms and off the bed. He let out a huff, running his hands through his short blond hair in frustration before swiveling to sit at the edge of the bed to watch her again. She was currently hopping up and down on one foot trying to get her last sneaker on, apparently not trusting him to let her be if she sat back down. Letting out a sigh, he asked dejectedly, "Why do you have to go?"

Casey gave him a pointed look. "You know why."

"It's Chris and Molly's night to watch him," Wyatt argued.

"Yes, tonight. Not tomorrow morning. I told Chris I would get Lucky up and ready for Magic School before I met him at The Cliff House for the wedding. He's got to get all the appetizers and entrees prepped and transported over there, so he doesn't have time. If I stay here tonight, you'll make me late."

"Molly could take Lucky."

Finally having successfully gotten her shoe on, Casey put her hands on her hips, regarding her boyfriend with not a small amount of annoyance. "She's not his mother. I am. I'm already missing tucking him tonight, so I would like to at least be able to make him breakfast and see him off to school."

Wyatt shook his head, his patience wearing thin. "And you think it's always going to be like this? You and Chris and Lucky all living in the Manor and seeing each other every day like some traditional family? Chris is planning to propose to Molly tomorrow. You know that, so you must realize nothing will be same afterward, right? They'll be getting married, finding their own place and starting their own family."

A flash of hurt crossed the woman's face, her eyes dropping as she bit her lower lip.

Feeling guilty, the Twice Blessed rose to stand in front of her, taking her shoulders gently in his hands. His voice was soft as he said, "I'm sorry. I know it's hard for you – the idea of not being able to see Lucky every day."

Sounding incredibly young and more than a little afraid she explained, "Considering I apparently die young, I just want to give him as much of my time as I can while I have it to give."

Wyatt winced as though slapped. When Lucky had come to the past, he'd said Casey was going to die sometime before he turned sixteen. At an unknown time in the next eleven years, she would be ripped from their lives, and apparently, Wyatt had done nothing to stop it. Wyatt had no idea why his futureself wouldn't move Heaven and Earth to save Casey, but he swore he wouldn't make that same mistake.

Casey, having noticed his reaction, put her small hand up to cup his face. " _Esta bien, Amorito._ If it's meant to be, not even the mighty Twice Blessed can change it. Death always gets who he comes for. Don't blame yourself for things that haven't even happened yet."

Wyatt kissed the palm of her hand. "I won't let it happen."

She pulled her hand back, suddenly fidgeting uncomfortably and avoiding looking into his face. "I think I've been in denial about mine and Chris' situation."

"Oh?"

She shrugged, shoving her hands in her pockets. "We were kids when we had Lucky, so living at the manor together made sense. It's worked really well, and I guess, I'm just afraid of what happens next because you're right, once they get engaged everything changes. We'll all get our own places, and Chris and I would actually have to share custody for the first time – like with a schedule of who gets him and when, and I hate that. I hate that there are going to be times I don't see my son."

"Change has never been easy for you," Wyatt acknowledged, "but it doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing. You and Chris have been best friends for too long to not make this work. You'll be fair and understanding with each other, and you'll both always do what's best for Lucky. Besides, maybe this change can bring about opportunities you never considered."

"Still Leo Jr. after all these years."

"Just don't buy me another plaid shirt, okay?" he joked, referencing the present she'd given him on his seventeenth birthday.

She laughed softly, nodding. "Deal, but I may need a few more of those whitelighter pep talks before this is all over."

"I can do that."

Casey stood on her tip toes to give him a loving kiss. "I love you, and I'll call you later, okay?" As she turned to leave, he lightly caught her wrist, stopping her. She frowned at him, though a tinge of amusement danced in her eyes. "Wy-att."

"Move in with me."

The other witch visibly started. "What?"

The rational part of his brain told him to drop it. Told him she obviously wasn't ready for such a drastic change right now with so many other things happening. The idea sounded so wonderful to him, though. Going to sleep with her every night and waking up next to her every morning. Sharing their lives together in a new, exciting way was too alluring, and he couldn't seem to stop himself. "Move in with me, Casey. There's plenty of space. The spare room isn't being used at all, so I could get another bed and some decorations and make it really nice for Lucky when he's with us. Then again, I know how much you hate the kitchen, so we could find a new place instead. Pick it out together? Hey, Lucky could even come with when we look, so he can help us decide, and maybe it'll make him feel like it's more his home too."

Casey grew pale, her mouth opening but no words forming. Her brown eyes were wide with shock. After a moment, she seemed to snap out of her stupor, but instead of answering his question, she kissed him again, but it was quick, more like a habit. "I have to go. I'll call you later, okay?"

Before Wyatt could utter another word, she'd bolted out the door. He plopped back on the bed, staring at the door she'd practically run through. He dropped his head into his hands. "Stupid, stupid, stupid."

000

Chris set down the last of the chafing dishes on the buffet table, wiping his brow with the back of his arm. This wedding was the largest job he and Casey's small catering company had ever gotten, and he'd been up since six this morning getting everything prepared for the big event before driving all the food and supplies over to the venue to finish cooking and setting it up. He took a few steps back, taking in the view of all his hard work. The first banquet table was full of appetizers like salmon puffs, caprese cups, foie gois with mini toasts, and prosciutto wrapped asparagus. The second table had the three entrée selections of gouda cheese, apple and spinach stuffed chicken, honey-soy salmon and quinoa stuffed peppers all served with curried vegetables. The only empty table was for the cake.

Pulling his phone out of his back pocket he sighed at the time. Guests would be arriving literally any minute now, and Casey should have been here with the cake twenty minutes ago. He was about to angrily dial her number when he heard the door in the back creak open and turned to see a cart loaded with a four-tiered cake and dozens of cupcakes come rolling in. The cake was covered with a baby blue buttercream frosting and decorated with white accents of beads and flowers and ribbon all done in more buttercream. It reminded Chris of fine china. The cupcakes were done to match.

"Wow," he breathed, moving to get a closer look. "Casey, did you seriously hand pipe all of these?"

The small woman peered around the cake, a partially eaten donut in her mouth. Letting go of the cart, she removed the donut and answered, "Yes. My hand was cramping pretty badly by the end."

"Why not just use fondant?"

Disgust marred her features. "This is why I don't let you make the cakes."

He rolled his eyes. "You're a snob. My fondant is delicious."

"It's pure sugar."

"Says the woman eating a donut."

"The fried dough evens it out." She took a big bite, making a show of enjoying it. "Mmmm, so good."

Chris scrunched up his nose. "Just tell me you gave Lucky actual food for breakfast."

She rolled her eyes now. "Yes, you health food Nazi. He had a ham and cheese omelet and orange juice. I was super pleased, by the way, when he made a special point of saying you make eggs better than I do."

Chris smirked. "Told ya." After a beat, "I am not a health food Nazi. He's just still growing. He needs the nutrients. The only time I ever got on you about what you ate was when you were pregnant, and you kept shoving your face full of Skittles every time I turned around."

As they worked as one to lift the cake onto the designated dessert table, Casey chuckled, "Ah yes, the great Skittles debate. I remember. You insisted they all taste the same."

"I'm so not doing this with you again," he grumbled, lowering his end of the cake.

"Cause you lost," she retorted, lowering her side.

Once the cake was centered, they started transferring the cupcakes over. They worked in silence for a bit before Casey ventured, "You nervous?"

"Now that you're actually here with the cake, no. We've got everything ready."

"No, _baboso_ , for tonight." She nudged him playfully, "Tell me what you have planned for Molly."

A big smile spread across his face at his friend's excitement. "Dinner for two under the stars in this quiet spot in the park she loves."

"When are you going to ask her? Before, during or after?" The other woman pulled a face, "You're not going to put the ring in the champagne glass or food, right? I saw a woman choke on it once at the restaurant. Such a bad idea."

"You're kidding. How did she not see it?"

Casey shrugged. "I don't know. Some people aren't observant. Besides, the whole point is to show her the shiny, shiny diamonds, which won't be nearly as shiny if they're covered in food or drink."

"Not really diamonds. . ." Chris said, suddenly looking sheepish. "Just the one. It was all I could afford."

His friend smiled, encouragingly. "I helped you pick it out, remember? It's simple but exquisite. Classy like Molly. She's going to love it, I promise. Now, do you have a speech?"

"I've been thinking about this for a long time, so yeah, I have a speech." He quirked a brow at her, "When did you get so nosey?"

"Since my best friend told me he wants to go and tie himself down to another human for the _rest_ of his life."

"You disapprove?"

"Not at all," she quickly answered. "I love Molly. She's amazing. Not to mention she's a good influence on you, calming I think. Lucky loves her too. Personally, I just don't get the whole marriage thing. Then again, my parents weren't the best example. It wasn't until _Papi_ was killed that my mom seemed to remember she loved him. You had Piper and Leo as role models, so I guess it makes sense you'd want to follow in their footsteps."

"My parents had their share of problems," Chris argued. "I almost wasn't conceived because they had split up when he became an Elder. Leo always did put his work above his family, but I never thought he would just abandon Mom and Wyatt. Me, sure, but not them. Thank god for near-death experiences in the ghostly plane."

Casey frowned at him, looking at him like he'd grown another head. "They told you when and where you were conceived? And why are you calling your dad Leo?"

Chris' hand paused in reaching for the last cupcake. He frowned, trying to remember what he'd just said, but for some reason it wasn't coming to him. It was like the last thirty seconds were blank. It wasn't the first time this had happened. He'd noticed it was getting worse lately. Truth be told, it was starting to freak him out. The worst was when it had happened with his mom the other day. She'd just looked at him so. . .shocked. It was like he'd slapped her. She'd flinched and gone pale and her eyes had started to glisten. When he'd asked her about it, she'd brushed him off, saying he had just reminded her of someone she'd known a long time ago. Before he could ask any follow-ups, she'd made some excuse about needing to check on something with P3 and briskly left.

"Chris?" Casey's voice startled him back to the moment.

He grabbed the last cupcake and placed it carefully in line with the rest. "Nothing."

" _Mentiroso._ "

"I'm not lying," he snapped, irritated. "I don't know why I said it, okay? Can we drop it, please?"

Casey folded her arms over her chest, frowning. "I'm worried about you. The last few years you've been changing and not in a normal, growing up kind of way. It's getting worse each month."

"What do you mean?"

"Growing up you were terrible at Spanish. Now, you're suddenly fluent?"

He shrugged, looking away from her. Making sure they were still alone, he finally answered, "A lifetime of hanging around you and it probably finally started to sink in, or maybe it's something to do with my elder side – whitelighters understand their charges no matter what language they speak."

"Which is how Wyatt's always understood me, but you weren't exactly in touch with your whitelighter side before." As he bristled, she put a hand to his arm, forcing him to look at her. "And the weird things you say sometimes . . . things that either didn't happen or just don't make sense? Things you shouldn't know? You've been slipping a lot, especially lately, but you act like you don't remember saying it. What's going on with you, Chris? If you know, you need to tell me – for Lucky's sake if nothing else."

He shook his head, glaring at her. "Low bringing in our son."

"I don't want anything bad to happen to his dad," she countered.

"I'm fine. I swear. I think it's just an old story I heard from the aunts," he lied so smoothly he almost scared himself. He didn't show it, though. Instead, he gestured to the bar, "We should finish getting set up. They'll be here any second."

The other witch bit the inside of her mouth, her brown eyes studying him intensely. Usually when she looked at him like that it made him nervous, and he'd fidget and tell her everything, but for some reason, today, it only served to make him angry. He stood his ground, staring her down, silently challenging her to say he was lying. After all, who was she to pry? This was his life. He would figure it out and deal with it on his own.

When she eventually just sighed and walked away toward the bar to get everything organized for cocktail hour, he let out a breath he hadn't even known he was holding. She was right; he was changing, and it scared the hell out of him.

000

Molly couldn't imagine anything more romantic than the evening Chris had planned for them tonight. Sitting on a thick blue quilt in a secluded area of Golden Gate Park, they had just finished an amazing picnic he'd prepared with all her favorite food and were currently sipping the champagne gazing up at the stars. A meteor shower was forecasted to start after a bit, and already she could see the bright streaks starting to dart across the dark sky.

The lone candle between them was flickering, softly illuminating his face as she noticed, not for the first time, his star gazing had been interrupted in favor of staring at her. His green eyes were dark, a sign she knew meant he was feeling something very intensely. She smiled softly, blushing a little at his attention. Even after all these years, he could make her feel like the same, unsure girl he'd taken to Prom. Back then she'd felt like the ugly, fat girl, but he made her truly feel beautiful that night and every moment since.

"Molly," Chris started, moving to kneel in front of her, taking her hands in his. "Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?" When she ducked her head, her cheeks turning an even brighter pink, he gently lifted her chin, forcing her to look at him. "I mean it. From the moment I first met you, I was struck by it. To top it off, you were this gentle, incredibly sweet girl, and all I wanted to do that night and every day since was show you how special you really are."

Molly smiled softly. "You have."

He wet his lips, suddenly a bit nervous. "See, the thing is, I haven't always. I made a huge mistake when I thought I'd lost you, but somehow you forgave me. Not only that but you have been absolutely incredible with Lucky."

"He's your son," Molly explained. "I never once stopped loving you, Chris, so how could I not love him? He's also such a sweet little boy. Sometimes I can't believe how fast he's growing up."

"We've all grown up a lot in the last five years," Chris agreed. "Molly, I love you so much. I don't think I could've gotten through all of this without you. You've been my safe harbor more times than I can count. You're my confidant, my friend, my lover and my partner through some of the most difficult times of my life. I never want to be without you again." He moved one hand to his coat pocket pulling out a white gold ring with a single, square cut diamond. "Marry me."

Molly's hand flew to her mouth, her eyes already moist with tears she knew would fall soon. She couldn't find her voice, so she nodded enthusiastically. She could only stare in awe as he slipped the ring on her finger, and it fit perfectly. It shone so brilliantly in the pale moonlight.

Smilingly through tears of euphoria, she looked at her now fiancée, who was smiling just as widely back at her. They moved toward one another, and she slipped her hands around Chris' neck, pulling him forward into a kiss. Her lips had just started to caress his when suddenly she stumbled forward, landing on her hands and knees in the spot Chris had just been kneeling. He was gone.

Molly looked around, panicked. "Chris?" She got to her feet, peering in all directions, futilely hoping he would appear again as quickly has he'd just vanished. "Chris!"

As realization sunk in, the whitelighter fell to her knees, her tears of joy quickly changing to fear and loss. The warning she had received many years ago had finally come to pass. Chris had truly vanished, and Molly had no idea where he'd gone, or when she would see him again.

The love of her life was gone.

tbc. . .


	3. Chain Reaction

Special thanks to Callisto Nicol - your review made me smile like crazy and Ravenclawdiadem16 - I promise your girl will show up but unfortunately not for a while (though she will be talked about quite a bit).

Chapter 3

Chain Reaction

Casey couldn't help but be a bit distracted as she tucked Lucky in for the night. Her mind kept drifting off, wondering how things were going with Chris and Molly. Had he asked her yet? How did she react? Were they already off celebrating, or was he waiting to the last second to pop the question? It wasn't until Casey pulled the blankets up around Lucky, lovingly brushing his bangs from his face that she noticed her son's normally sage green eyes were dark and his little brow was furrowed with thought. She was struck, for what seemed like the millionth time, by how eerily similar he could be in both look and manners to his father.

"Momma?" his little voice started.

"Yes, _Lucerito_?"

The child was staring at his hands, obviously struggling with what he wanted to ask. After a moment he hesitantly looked up at her, his face looking so much older than his mere five years. "How come you and Daddy aren't married?"

She should have expected this question at some point. Should have seen it coming and been planning out the perfect answer for years. For some reason, she hadn't expected it. The shock hit her in the stomach like a physical blow, the air seemingly leaving her as her mind flittered around trying to think of what to say that would make sense to the little boy. In the end all she could manage to do was ask, "Where did that come from?"

Tiny shoulders rose up and down. "I dunno. The other kids at magic school were talking. They said we were weird, and you dating Uncle Wyatt was gross." His bright green eyes dropped back to his hands. "They called me names."

Casey felt her chest constrict looking at Lucky so confused and hurt. His peers were making fun of him. They were making him doubt himself, and his pain was her fault. She pulled him to a hug, stroking his silky brown hair. "I'm so sorry, sweetie. Sometimes other kids can be mean, but you need to know you are not weird, okay? You are so sweet and smart and special. Never doubt that."

Lucky pulled out of her arms, a little frown on his face, his eyes narrowed. "You didn't say why."

"Why what?" she asked, not following.

The little boy let out a breath in frustration, the look on his face identical to the one his father had given her countless times. "How come you and Daddy aren't married?"

"Well, uh. . .you see. . ."

"Don't you love Daddy?"

"Of course-"

"-And Daddy loves you, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"-then I don't get it," the child declared, throwing his arms up. His tiny face was scrunched into an irritated scowl, his green eyes almost glaring at her. "You should get married."

Casey sighed. "It's not so simple, _Mijo_. What about Molly? You love Molly, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, your Daddy wants to marry Molly, remember? He asked if you were okay with it weeks ago. He told you how Molly would be your step-mom, and how things were going to be changing."

"I 'member," Lucky acknowledged. After a moment, he folded his small arms over his chest, a thought seemingly occurring to him. "Can't he marry you too?"

"Not without going to jail," she automatically answered. Noticing her son's puzzled face, "Never mind. No. The answer is no he cannot."

"Oh," Lucky said, deflated. He tilted his head to the side, worrying his bottom lip as his mind went over something. Recognizing yet another look he'd gotten from his father, Casey knew she wasn't going to like what popped out of her son's mouth next. Sure enough, she was right because he slowly asked, "Are you going to marry Uncle Wyatt?"

Casey felt her mind shut off like someone had tripped a breaker. She could only stutter incoherently for a few moments. Had she thought about it before? Yes. Had she actually sorted out her feelings about the prospect? Of course not. Yet here she was being confronted by her five year old son about her future, and by proxy his, and she felt like she owed him an answer. Only she didn't have one.

The child suddenly smiled, putting his hand on her arm. "It's okay if you don't wanna marry Uncle Wyatt. I get it." The child's eyes shot up over her head, mischief gleaming through those green orbs as he said a bit too brightly, "Hi, Uncle Wyatt."

Casey quickly turned around, horrified at what Wyatt may have heard from Lucky and not heard from her, and felt sick as she saw her boyfriend standing in the doorway, a quiet sadness etched on his face.

The Twice Blessed forced a small smile for his nephew. "Hey, Kiddo. You have a good day?"

The little boy didn't return the favor, flatly replying, "No. You?"

Wyatt shook his head, his smile slipping. "Not really."

Desperate to change the subject, Casey clapped her hands . "Okay, it's late, and you should already be asleep." Turning her back to Wyatt, Casey gave Lucky a sharp warning look, letting him know under no uncertain terms she had caught on to his little ploy, but Lucky just smiled innocently, and help her, Casey could only shake her head at the audacity of her young child. "I love you, _Lucerito_." As she bent down to kiss his cheek she whispered, "Don't think you're getting off so easy, Little One. Just wait till I tell your father."

Finally, a sheepish look crossed the child's face and he shrunk down in his bed. "I love you?"

"Uh-huh. Goodnight, Lucas."

The child pulled a face at the more formal of his nicknames before the stubborn streak came back and he wrapped himself in his blanket and flopped over on his side so his back was to the adults. A muffled, "Night" was tossed over his shoulder.

Wyatt's eyebrows were up as he and Casey exited the room, quietly closing the door behind them. Wyatt leaned against the wall, regarding her carefully, "So, that was interesting."

"He just caught me off guard, I swear," the woman rushed to explain, "Not two seconds earlier he wanted Chris to participate in polygamy for goodness sake."

The Twice Blessed nodded understanding. "So he wants his parents together, and I'm the bad guy making that not happen?"

Casey let out a breath, pulling her ponytail tighter out of nervous habit. "I think so. I mean, I think _he_ thinks so."

"Not quite fair," Wyatt mused. "Why does Molly get a pass?"

"Lucky's nothing if not practical. Probably already knows he needs a spare mother."

"You ever going to grow out of that morbid sense of humor?"

She shrugged. "It helps me cope."

Wyatt shook his head, gazing back at the closed door to his nephew's room. He looked tired and somewhat resigned in that moment. "I thought they were supposed to get moody and act out at fifteen not five."

"Yeah, well, what did we expect?" Casey bemoaned. "He got way more of Chris than me."

"Sure," Wyatt drawled, his somber mood slipping into amusement.

"I wasn't sullen or sarcastic. I was a delight."

Wyatt fought not to laugh, mostly failing. "Where was I during this so-called delightful stage?"

"Okay, I was the female version of Chris," she admitted, wrinkling her nose. "Our son is doomed." Noticing Wyatt making a face, she asked, "What?"

"Could you not refer to yourself as the female version of my brother? You know. . .considering you and I are sleeping together and all?"

Casey burst out laughing, which only further caused Wyatt's discomfort to grow. His cheeks turned red as he lightly glared at her, his foot tapping the ground as he waited impatiently for her to stop laughing at him. After several minutes, she forced herself to gain some composure, though she was still biting her bottom lip fairly hard.

"You know, I'm supposedly some sort of all powerful witch and King Arthur," Wyatt began, "don't you think I'm owed just a little respect from my girlfriend?"

"I think you know me better than that," she replied, grinning.

Wyatt smiled, but it didn't hold its usual charm, and instant worry filled his partner. She studied him carefully and noted the way his shoulders were sagging a bit, how his sky blue eyes normally full of sunshine and joy didn't have the same warmth she was accustomed to finding in them. "You said you had a bad day. What exactly happened?"

Instead of answering, he nodded toward the attic, and they moved in tandem toward the stairs leading up to the Halliwell's favorite meeting room. Once inside, the Twice Blessed gestured for her to have a seat, so she perched on the arm of the sofa, waiting for him to begin. The fact he wanted her to come up to the attic before answering made her nervous, and she started chewing on her bottom lip.

"I went to the past today," Wyatt started. When she didn't interrupt him with questions like he assumed she might, he continued, "Mom summoned me by accident. She thought my two and half year old self was having problems with imaginary friends, and when she cast a spell to talk to little me, it brought me back there."

"To almost twenty three years ago?"

"Yeah."

Casey's brows shot up. "That had to be. . .awkward."

Wyatt shrugged a little. "Some of it was. Mom and the aunts being so young and unsure was hard to see." A wide smile formed, "I saw Chris as a baby, though. He was so small and chubby. He looked just like Lucky at that age." He frowned, "Or Lucky would look like him? Did look like him?"

"I got it. Verbs are rough in our world."

"I think I saved him from the marble incident anyway." Off her arched brow, "Oh, Chris swallowed a marble once. Always was too curious and independent for his own good."

"You didn't tell them _too_ much about the future did you?" Casey asked, worried. "It could have negative consequences."

"It was hard, but I think I did okay. Actually, they said they didn't want to know about the future." He paused, watching her face carefully as he finished, "They were scared it would change again."

Casey frowned, leaning back against the sofa, puzzling over the words a moment before asking, "Meaning it had been changed once before?"

"Right."

"Do you know what they were talking about?"

"Maybe," Wyatt answered slowly, suddenly not able to look at her. He moved over to the Book of Shadows, caressing the cover lightly as if drawing strength from it. He took a deep breath and slowly met her gaze. "I should have talked to you about this a long time ago, but I didn't know how, and I had convinced myself it was over and done, and we should try not to worry, but going back there and seeing what I could so easily become. . .it made me realize time isn't fixed but in constant flux."

Casey tilted her head, watching her boyfriend carefully. He wasn't acting like his normally vibrant self. Not even close. She leaned forward again, trying to catch his gaze. "Wyatt, you're scaring me. What are you talking about?"

He pursed his lips, hesitating before finally admitting, "I turned evil."

In the face of his very serious admission, his girlfriend snorted. "Riiight. Uh-huh. Sure." When he continued to stare at her with an intensity not common on his normally jovial face, the amused smile on her face fell, and she instinctively leaned back away from him. "That's not. . .you would never. . ."

"I did," he confessed softly. "A demon got to my toddler version and did something to Wuvy, which in turn infected me."

"Chris always did say that bear was creepy," Casey muttered. She frowned, "Wait, isn't this the story your parents told us when we were going through yours and Chris' old things, looking for stuff for Lucky?"

Wyatt smiled sadly. "Yeah, I guess I didn't realize they were talking about my future and not just their past."

"So what happened?"

"Dad saved me by gaining little me's trust, and thankfully no one got hurt, but even still, I remember what it felt like, and it makes me sick." He finally met her gaze, his own filled with fear and pain. "I didn't care who got hurt. I actually laid a trap for Aunt Paige and Aunt Phoebe, and they could've died. I could've killed my own aunts. I threatened Mom and Dad. I told Dad I would kill him if he tried to stop me, and I meant it."

Casey licked her lips, trying to think of the right thing to say. "To be fair, we've all been turned evil or into monsters at least once. You were kind of due."

"No one else has the power to destroy countries with the wave of their arms," Wyatt countered softly. "Only you and Chris know what I struggle with every day. What carrying these powers feels like to me. How sometimes I don't even feel human anymore. Now, imagine if I didn't care? No personal gain consequences. No fear of exposure. I could do whatever I wanted with these powers. Imagine the kind of horrible things I would accomplish."

Casey rose from her place on the sofa to move to him. She put her hands to his face, forcing him to look at her. "You never would. You're too good a man, Wyatt Halliwell. In fact, you're the sweetest, gentlest, most loving man I've ever known."

"I wasn't always," Wyatt argued. "I think that's what they changed."

"What are you talking about?"

Before he could answer, a column of orb lights drifted down through the ceiling forming Molly, her face streaked with tears. She turned to Wyatt first, her words garbled and rushed. "Chris vanished, Wyatt. He just disappeared into thin air right in front of me. Not like when he's using his power of invisibility. He was truly gone. I couldn't sense him anymore. One minute we were celebrating one of the happiest moments of our lives, and the next he's just gone. No trace or trail. Vanished."

Wyatt instinctively reached out with his own feelings only to find a cold, blank spot where his sibling normally resided. His breath hitched as he realized what must have happened. He opened his eyes to the find the two women looking at him expectantly. He shook his head. "I can't sense him either."

" _Dios mio_ ," Casey breathed. "How is that possible? You can always sense him. Even in the underworld you can feel him even if you can't tell where he is. Does this mean. . ." she swallowed thickly, suddenly going very pale.

Molly shook her head. "No. He's not dead. I know that much."

Casey shot her a skeptical look. "How do you know?"

The other woman's cheeks grew pink, her hazel eyes dropping nervously to the floor. "Because future Lucky told me this would happen. He said Chris was going to disappear for a while, but he didn't say why."

"What?" Casey half-shrieked.

Wyatt and Molly both winced at the tone.

The Twice Blessed moved to put his hands on his girlfriend's shoulders to calm her down, but she brushed him off, turning on the whitelighter, her voice shaking in rage. "You knew for _six years_ Chris was going to mysteriously vanish, and you didn't feel the need to share that little piece of information with anyone? That maybe we could do something to help him? To stop it?"

"Lucky said no one could change it. It was Chris' destiny, but we shouldn't worry."

"Shouldn't worry about his father magically disappearing for God-knows what reason?" Casey went on, reminding Wyatt very much of his mother when she started to get close to what Chris had dubbed 'TNT mode'.

"Casey, stop. It's not Molly's fault," Wyatt defended. "No one could stop it. Believe me."

Molly turned to Wyatt realizing the normally over-protective brother had been taking this news with an uncharacteristic level of calm. She folded her arms over chest as she realized, "You know something."

Wyatt sighed, knowing the time had come for his own confession. Focusing on Molly's curious gaze instead of his girlfriend's furious one, he slowly admitted, "Yes. I think I know what happened to Chris."

The Twice Blessed took a deep breath, readying himself for the reaction he knew he would get when he dropped the bomb on Casey. She was going to be furious and terrified, and she was going to feel completely betrayed because he hadn't told her sooner. "About six years ago, I started having nightmares. Only they were too real and too strange to be regular nightmares. I was seeing Chris as he is now, but I was in a highchair or a crib or sitting on the floor. Mom and the Aunts and Dad all looked really young, not much older than we are now."

Casey said nothing, her face suddenly stony. Molly offered a small smile, trying to encourage the man to continue with his explanation.

"I did some digging, and I discovered they weren't dreams," Wyatt went on. "They were latent memories from when I was a toddler. I think getting those visions had something to do with my psychic abilities, but I'm not sure. In any case, Chris really was in the past when I was a toddler. I think that's where he is now."

"Why?" Molly asked, completely baffled.

"From what I was able to gather from seers, oracles, pretty much anyone I could find with information on that time, Chris was in the past to save me from turning evil. It was just all confirmed when mom summoned me to the past today, and I heard them say how they didn't want to risk changing the future again, and their reactions to me being evil – like they half expected it."

"You were evil today?" Molly waved her hands to stop him from answering. "Never mind. Obviously fixed, and you can tell me about it some other time. Right now, I just really need to know what happened to my fiancée."

Wyatt couldn't help but smile softly. "You said yes?"

"Of course I said yes," Molly answered, fighting not to roll her eyes. "It was about the time he vanished."

"Oh," he said, his smile dropping, "sorry."

The whitelighter started pacing, trying to put together everything she knew so far. "So he went to the past to save you from turning evil?" Off his nod, "Okay, but how? What would have possibly turned you evil?"

Wyatt shrugged. "I didn't find out that part of the story, but based on today's events, it's apparently not that difficult for me to be changed as a kid."

"You're really going to have to explain that to me later," Molly reiterated. "Meantime, you're not evil now, so I'm still confused. Why would he go to the past if you're not evil? He'd have nothing to save you from."

Casey, who'd remained uncharacteristically quiet once Wyatt had told his side of the story, suddenly said flatly, "Paradox."

The whitelighter and other witch looked at her with confusion.

Her voice still numb, she clarified, "The Chris who saved Wyatt from turning evil would have created a paradox. If Wyatt wasn't evil, the Chris in the changed timeline would have no reason to go back in time, but if Chris didn't go back in time, Wyatt wouldn't be saved. An endless, unresolved loop. He broke one of the biggest rules of time travel, and I imagine this is the personal gain consequence."

"That makes sense," Molly said, softly. "Why he was remembering things obviously from the other timeline. The Elders or whoever plotted this was preparing him to go back in time again. To fix the paradox by sending our Chris, from a timeline where Wyatt is good, back in time as though he were the one from the timeline where Wyatt was evil."

Wyatt frowned, "Do you really think the Elders set this up?"

A determined look crossed the whitelighter's soft face. "I don't know, but I'm sure going to find out. I'm not just going to sit idly by while Chris goes through this alone."

Casey snorted derisively.

Molly cast a sidelong glance at her other friend. The other woman was staring at a spot on the floor, her body rigid, arms folded. She had been uncharacteristically calm, and it worried Molly immensely. She switched her gaze to Wyatt and bit her lip nervously, wondering what they should do.

Wyatt had expected rage. He'd expected tears and yelling in Spanish and possibly being beaten with little fists. He didn't expect the numbness. The utter blank look on her face was more frightening than any tantrum.

He moved toward her, reaching out a hand to her shoulder, which was when she snapped. She batted his hand away, her eyes flashing. "Don't touch me."

"Casey-" Molly tried.

"-No. You both knew this was going to happen, and neither of you said a word to me," Casey said, her voice dangerously low and steady. "Neither of you warned Chris."

"I really didn't know," Wyatt argued, feebly. "I only knew _a_ Chris went to the past. I had hoped it wouldn't affect our Chris. When Chris started saying strange things, yes, I got worried, but I didn't know _this_ would happen. I thought, maybe, he'd just remember the other timeline. I thought maybe they'd merge to some degree. I honestly didn't know what to expect."

Casey took a step back from Wyatt, shaking her head as she realized something horrible. "The fight we had six years ago. You were trying to push me away. You told me I needed to learn to stand on my own because someday there wouldn't be anyone around to catch me when I fell. You meant because you might be evil, and Chris would be God knows where. You knew my son was going to lose his father, and you said _nothing_."

"Lucky promised it's only temporary," Molly pointed out.

"Stay out of this," Casey snapped. Her gaze never left Wyatt's face. "You lied to me. All this time. You knew something was going to happen to Chris, and you. . . What? Didn't care? Couldn't be bothered to save him? Or was our past really so threatening to you that you were glad he was out of the picture?"

Wyatt's eyes flashed now. "He's my brother. I would die for him in a heartbeat. I don't give a damn about your bar top escapade six years ago. It's over." His voice grew harsh, "Or maybe it's not?"

Molly's eyebrows shot north and she hurriedly stepped between them. "Hey, stop. Enough." She put her hands around the smaller girl's shoulders, forcibly moving Casey backward just as the other woman's hand went to try to slap the tall blond. For once, Molly was grateful for her bigger size, it made holding the irate woman still much easier. She eventually turned Casey toward her and locked her hazel eyes on the fuming brown, trying to force her to calm down. "I get it. You're scared, and you're angry we didn't tell you sooner, but attacking Wyatt is not going to help Chris. We need to work together. We all love him, and we all want him back safely."

Casey dropped her gaze, biting back any further retorts.

Molly turned to Wyatt next, "That shot was beneath you, and you know it. Besides, I take offense at the insinuation."

Guilt poured off of Wyatt as he realized what he'd said. He closed his eyes in shame. "I'm so sorry. I don't know where that came from." When he opened them again, he sought out Casey, but she refused to look at him. "I am so sorry."

"We're both sorry," Molly offered, trying to get her friend to look at her.

After a long beat, Casey lifted her head to shoot Wyatt a dark look before sending an equally scathing glare Molly's direction. Her voice was thick as she said, "You two can be sorry all you want. I'm the one who has to tell Lucky his father is gone, and no one knows when or if he'll be back. I'm the one who has to break that child's heart and fill him with the kind of fear and pain neither of you could possibly understand."

Before either Molly or Wyatt could utter another word, Casey rushed past them out of the attic. Her footsteps fell hard on the stairs from the attic until they reached her room where she slammed the door shut. The sound echoed in both Wyatt's and Molly's ears as they exchanged guilty looks.

Molly let out a breath, running a hand through her raven hair. "This is not good. She's going to do something brash, and I promised Lucky I wouldn't let that happen."

"What do you mean?"

"Lucky made me swear I wouldn't let Casey go after Chris," Molly explained. "He said she would accidentally change something and his future would get messed up because of it."

Wyatt shook his head. "She would never leave Lucky behind. There's no chance of her trying to go to the past. I'd be more concerned with her trying to summon Chris back here before he's had a chance to finish his mission, and honestly, she doesn't have the power to do that. She's a strong witch, but not that strong."

"Are you all right?" Molly asked, still shocked at how Wyatt had spoken a few moments ago. He had always been one of the nicest guys she'd ever known, even before she'd entered the Halliwell family's inner-circle. Though, when it came to Casey, Wyatt tended to let his emotions get the better of him.

"Not really," Wyatt admitted. "I'm sorry I said that about Chris and Casey. I really honestly have no idea where that came from. I was just so angry she would accuse me of being so jealous I would let something happen to Chris, especially when it took me a long time to get over the idea I could be the reason he. . ." he stopped himself, changing his words, "One of the visions has haunted me for a long time. I don't say this to scare you, but I want you to be prepared. "

Molly hugged herself, her voice coming out shaky as she forced herself to ask, "What did you see?"

"You said Lucky swore he came back safely?"

"Yes. He promised I didn't need to worry." Molly stared into Wyatt's face, reading the pain and fear there as plain as day, and her stomach fell. "Please, Wyatt, tell me what you saw."

Wyatt dropped his gaze to the floor. "In one of my dreams, I was pretty sure he died. He was stabbed."

Molly sucked in air, trying not to cry. Her hand flew up to her mouth as her head moved back and forth in denial. After a long while she managed to whisper, "Lucky wouldn't lie about that. Not about his own father. Chris has to be ok. He'll be okay, right?"

"I really need to believe so," Wyatt managed, "because I don't think I can handle it if my little brother dies because of me."

"Then we need to prepare," Molly said. "We need to find out as much as we can about what happened in the past, and what could happen when he gets home. I'm going to check with the Elders, maybe bring Prue with since she tends to know how to scare them into fessing up. You need to tell your parents, and gather as much information as you can from what they remember."

Wyatt nodded. "Right. That's good. We can prepare for all contingencies."

"Exactly." Molly focused her hazel eyes on his blue, willing him to believe her when she said, "We will not lose him. No matter what."

Wyatt just wished he could believe that.

0000

Piper Halliwell knew her sons. She'd made it her mission to know every possible detail about her children from their favorite food to their philosophical beliefs. She could recognize the sound of their feet on the floor, knowing a shuffle from Chris or a quiet patter from Wyatt both signaled distress. She knew in one look what they were thinking and feeling. After having gone months living with her future son in the past and not recognizing him, she'd vowed to know them both in every way.

Taking one look at her oldest son's face, Piper's heart nearly broke on the spot. She could feel her husband tense beside her on the loveseat, clearly also more than capable of reading their first born. She tried to keep her voice calm as she questioned softly, "Wyatt, sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Chris is gone," Wyatt answered slowly, softly.

Piper saw as Leo dropped his Scrabble pieces, his face showing every ounce of terror he felt. The former Elder's face drained of all color, his eyes, wide and fearful shooting up to their son for clarification. His hands began to subtly shake.

She took her husband's hands in her own and squeezed, giving him a confident nod, reassuring him as best she could before she turned to her son. She was amazed at how calm she made her voice sound when she asked, "What do you mean your brother is gone?"

The all-powerful witch couldn't meet his mother's gaze. His cerulean eyes dropped to the floor much like they had when he was a child who had stolen the last cookie and been caught. "I mean he vanished. I can't sense him anywhere." He finally lifted his eyes, forcing himself to take in their expressions as he finished, "I think he's in the past."

Leo physically flinched before dropping his head. His voice was so strangled as he desperately begged, "Please, no."

Piper wanted to comfort her husband, but at the moment her attention had to be on her sons. She took a deep breath, focusing sharp brown eyes on her oldest child. "What do you mean, Wyatt? Why would your brother be in the past?"

Wyatt couldn't keep her gaze, his own sliding to the side as shame filled his features. His voice was smaller and weaker than the mother had heard in years as he answered, "To stop me from turning evil."

The eldest Charmed One couldn't stop the gasp now. She tried, but it was out before she could help it. Their whole family had tried to so hard to protect the boys from this, but as usual, Destiny had another idea in mind. Now, her poor, sweet, happy-go-lucky Wyatt held the burden of his past life square on his shoulders, the guilt bearing down on him already. And Chris? Her mischievous, sweet little boy. . . well, he was a man now, but to her he'd always be the little boy who'd followed her around the kitchen, his big green eyes looking up at her with complete love and trust. She winced at the idea of what he was going through right now. Partly by her hands.

"No," Leo said more firmly. He turned to Piper. "I'm not losing him again, Piper. I can't."

"Losing him?" Wyatt questioned, his voice pained.

Piper pursed her lips, turning her head away. It took a few minutes for her to regain enough composure to face her first born again. She took a deep breath before stating, "We won't let that happen. Your Aunts and I have been preparing for this for a long time."

Leo's head whipped toward her. "What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Or me?" Wyatt demanded.

As the men began to talk at once, Piper raised two fingers to her mouth whistling shrilly. "Enough. Both of you. You're not going to do Chris any good like this." She turned to her husband first, her face and voice both gentle as she addressed him. "I saw what you went through the first time. I couldn't ask you to drudge all that back up. Paige was able to fill in enough of the gaps when we were figuring things out."

"Figuring what things out?" Wyatt asked, frustrated. "What the hell is going to happen to Chris?"

Piper arched a brow at her son's tone. To her surprise, he didn't back down like he normally would have. She realized just how scared he really was for his brother. "Wyatt, how much do you know? More importantly, _how_ do you know?"

"I started having dreams about Chris in the past. I researched from there. I know he went to the past to save me from turning evil, and I was pretty sure he died, but Molly swears Lucky told her he winds up ok."

"Wait Lucky told Molly?" Leo asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Future Lucky," Wyatt clarified.

"Oh God Lucky," Piper breathed. "Does he know Chris is gone?"

Wyatt shook his head. "No, he was asleep by the time we found out. Casey plans on telling him though."

"How's she handling it?" Piper asked knowingly.

Wyatt bit his lip before answering, "Really not good." Then he added, "I'm not doing much better."

Piper moved from her spot on the loveseat to stand in front of her son. She put her hands to his face, forcing him to look at her. "Listen to me, Wyatt. We will not lose your brother. Like I said, my sisters and I have been making contingency plans for almost twenty three years now. Now that we know for sure our Chris has to go through all that _he_ went through, you can be damn sure I will have every whitelighter in this family harassing the Elders 24/7 until we get some freaking answers."

"I need to know," Wyatt said, "the whole story. I need you to tell me every single detail about what happened when the original Chris went back in time."

"Wyatt," Piper hedged, "I don't think-"

"-I deserve to know," Wyatt cut in. "Please. Knowledge is power, and while I trust you and the aunts, I want to make sure we have every possible base covered. Chris is in this mess because of me, and I need to help, and I can't do that if I don't know everything."

The parents exchanged looks before Piper let out a breath. She gestured for her son to take a seat. Once he was settled she began, "He called himself Chris Perry, and he came into our lives in 2004, right after the Titans were released. . ."

0000

The seer backed away from the pool as the vision's image faded from the murky liquid. A smile graced her lips as she watched the realization dawn on her new master's face. She tilted her head slightly, "You understand, then?"

"Perfectly," he responded with his lilting accent, a sinister smile spreading across his handsome, human-looking face. "The key to destroying Camelot in any timeline always lies with Guinevere."

"They've been warned by the boy from the future," the seer reminded him, "she will need a push. Something to force her hand into changing the past again, so we may have our true future."

"Easy," the man replied confidently. "The answer is in the child. A mother would do anything for her son, right? If we use him, she'll have no choice but to play right into our hands. The real trick will be keeping an eye on things in the past with that bloody half-breed always determined in any timeline to save his brother."

"There are those in the past much stronger than your generation," the seer reminded him. "I could get a message to an old ally of mine. Send my past self a vision, which she could relay to him."

The young demon frowned. "So he can steal the place I have worked so hard to claim for my own?"

"Or grant you even more power than you've been able to accumulate on your own," she countered. "If you work together, tampering with both past and present simultaneously. . .you could finally do what no other demon has managed: Destroy the Charmed Ones and their progeny."

Her master considered the prospect only a moment before the greed for power and glory settled the issue. His face split into a crooked smile. "Send the message. Meanwhile, I best go introduce myself to little Lucky Halliwell. After all, every boy needs a father figure, right?"

With a dark laugh, he flamed out, ready to take back the future that was stolen from evil's grasp nearly twenty-three years ago.

TBC. . .

I think, out of all the stories I've written, this is only the second chapter EVER I haven't had Chris make an appearance. I feel very strange. No worries though, he will feature heavily in every other chapter now. Though, based on my plans for him, he may not like that fact. ;)


	4. Surprise, Surprise

Thanks so much to Callisto Nicol and Anthony for your wonderful reviews. You guys keep me getting this updated regularly.

Chapter 4

Surprise, Surprise

It had been over two months since Chris had disappeared. The entire family had been using every free moment to try to find out what had happened to him, and what the future had in store for the young man while each dealing with the ramifications of his loss in their own way.

Piper had prepared for this moment. She'd interrogated Paige years ago, forcing the younger woman to relive every painful detail of her nephew's murder, so she could piece together plans to save him should some twisted Fate decide to try to take her baby boy from her again. When Piper had all the information she had obsessed over Elder magic, poison, stab wounds, and time travel. She'd studied every night after her young children had gone to bed, never stopping until she finally determined what course of action she would take. She'd developed two plans: Plan A was to tap into Wyatt's immense powers while he drew extra healing from every whitelighter in their family. Their combined strength, based on her research, should be enough to heal anything an Elder could dole out. Plan B was to develop a potion to counter act the poisoned magic just in case. Now, faced with the reality her younger version had feared for so long, she was oddly calm. She kept busy with her restaurant and P3, cleaning the manor more frequently than ever, and cooking enough to feed the family twice over. Her family might have thought she was emotionless or perhaps in shock, but the truth of the matter was she was confident Chris would be all right. She wouldn't let a thought to the contrary cross her mind because if she did. . .she would break. She would crumble into a million pieces and there would be no putting her back together. She'd felt the loss of a child once, and it had nearly destroyed her. She'd always felt in her heart like she had three sons since the two versions of Chris were so different, and one was gone forever. Losing another would be her end.

Leo couldn't talk about it. He couldn't think about it. Anytime he tried to research or ask questions he was struck with a paralyzing fear. His skin grew clammy, his throat and chest would constrict painfully and he would feel himself begin to shake and hyperventilate. It had taken him so long to move past losing Chris the first time. His only solace was Chris' baby version, and now that sweet baby could face the same fate. The former elder's severe panic attacks prevented him from helping the others with preparing and researching. He felt so ashamed of his weakness, but he knew he was more of a hindrance than a help to their efforts at this point. He decided to help in more non-magical ways, namely, being a present male figure for his grandson. He spent as much time as he could with Lucky, playing games, watching movies, going to the park and playing catch. If he couldn't be there for Chris, he would make certain to devote himself to Chris's little boy.

Lucky, for his part, didn't really understand what was happening. He knew his dad was gone on an important mission, and no one knew when he would back. He knew his dad's loving, calming presence couldn't be felt no matter how hard he tried. He knew his family was upset, and they weren't telling him everything, which made him angry. Every night, he had bad dreams where his dad was lost and hurt, and he tried to reach him but couldn't. He hated waking up crying but couldn't seem to stop. He also hated the way his mom's eyes looked when she didn't think he could see her staring at him. It was the same look she got whenever someone mentioned his Grandpa Alvarez, and he wondered if his dad was going to die too. That's why when a strange man in black had approached him, Lucky didn't vanquish him. He listened as the man told him the truth about where his dad was, and what would happen to him. He also promised to help to stop it. Lucky was willing to try anything – even working with a demon.

Casey had shut down, moving mechanically through her days. She was more afraid than she had been in years. Nightmares of her father's brutal murder by the hands of the demon, Zayel, plagued her, and a dream she'd had about Chris taking her father's place made frequent appearances too. When she wasn't feeling petrified, she was filled with fury. She blamed the entire Halliwell clan for the pain her son was suffering. They all had known this could happen and none of them had lifted a finger or said a word of warning. The only person aside from Lucky she was remotely her old self with was Leo, and she supposed it was because she could tell he felt as scared and sad as she did, and he seemed to understand better than anyone else how a boy needs his father. She had exchanged exactly three words with Wyatt since their fight. They were ' _Vete al carajo'._

Upon hearing the entire tale of 'Chris Perry', Wyatt had lost his cheery disposition. Since a child, he'd always been the happy-go-lucky one, the one with the positive attitude and sunny, almost goofy disposition. He'd believed in good and light and right and truth as all being so absolute, but now? He wasn't sure he believed in anything. He had been evil. According to what Chris had told their mother in the past, his other version had killed people, even tried to kill Chris once. He'd made life so nightmarish a version of his kid brother had gone to the past and had been willing to lie and manipulate and risk his life and his family's lives to try to change it, and, as Wyatt had feared, had died in the process. Stabbed by an enchanted blade by someone the family had trusted. His body had vanished, but what did that mean? Had he ceased to exist because the timeline changed? Had he vanished in death because he was out of his time? Had he somehow been transported to the future? Wyatt dedicated every spare moment trying to find out.

When Piper had told her sisters, Phoebe's first reaction had been guilt. It had completely drowned her for those first days. She had been awful to Chris during his time in the past. It was a time in her life where she'd let her selfish desires rule her, and she'd been rude and unfeeling toward him so often because he dared to interfere with her precious social life. Even after she'd discovered his identity, she'd been less than sympathetic to his plight. She'd been angry for everything he'd done to their family, especially his parents. She'd even said out loud he may not have been meant to exist, and he'd heard her say it. He'd played it off as a thought he'd had too, but she could still clearly envision the hurt behind his eyes. She couldn't believe she could be so cold to her own flesh and blood. She just couldn't seem to stop seeing him as the neurotic whitelighter who'd lied to and manipulated them. At least, not until the end . . . when it was too late to apologize. Now, the little boy she'd watched grow up and whom she loved dearly was going to experience her apathy. How would he ever forgive her? How would she ever forgive herself? Her solution was to throw herself into fixing it. She'd gone on more vision quests these last months than the rest of her life combined. Unfortunately with no results. It seemed whoever was behind this was blocking her gift. She refused to quit trying though.

Paige had taken the news even less well. Her face had drained of all color making the already pale woman look almost ghostly. Her eyes had gone glassy, tears forming but not falling as she was instantly hit with an image of her cocky, sarcastic, determined nephew lying on his mother's bed, blood slowly pooling around him from the knife wound in his upper abdomen. She'd convinced herself and everyone else it wouldn't happen this time – that they hadn't really lost him. Now, faced with Chris' disappearance, she feared she'd been horribly, sickeningly wrong. Luckily, Piper, at least, hadn't entirely believed her. She'd prepared with her baby sister's previously reluctant help – after all it was a waste of time since it wouldn't happen again. She was so glad Piper hadn't lost her stubbornness in all these years. Despite her grumbling, Paige had agreed to help her big sister and worked with her contacts in the magical community trying to gather information on healing potions and gathering the ingredients they would need for it. Fairy dust, leprechaun luck, and a few other very rare parcels were on the lengthy list. Now, she worked diligently and whole heartedly on mastering the tricky potion.

Prue hadn't lived during the time Chris had been in the past, nor had she been allowed to contact her family. She'd been busy trying to adjust to her life as a whitelighter, so she hadn't even known a version of Chris had travelled to the past until years later. It should have shocked her when her nephew disappeared; unfortunately, her life had shown her just how unlucky Halliwells could be. Prue spent much of her time these last months consoling her protégé, Molly, the best she could, assuring her everything would be fine. Seeing the sweet girl so lost and alone served to fuel Prue's drive. She'd raised such a commotion in the heavens the Elders often made themselves scarce upon her arrival these days.

Molly tried to stay positive, but when she'd turn in her bed at night to find the other side cold and empty, her heart clenched painfully, and a little voice taunted her with horrible thoughts. Her fiancée wasn't ever coming home, or if he came home, he couldn't possibly be the same man she'd loved. He wouldn't want her anymore. She would inevitably rise from the mattress to dress and go back up to the Elders, waiting patiently in the white halls until someone deigned to talk to her. It was on one of these such visits someone finally had some answers for her . . . just not an Elder.

A being in a white robe, signifying their simple whitelighter status approached her as she sat dejectedly on the steps outside the Great Hall of Elders. At first Molly paid him no attention, but eventually she noticed the other whitelighter was staring at her. She looked up, wondering if she should click in whitelighter or just talk. Truth be told, after six years, she still wasn't very proficient in whitelighter.

"Molly?" a man's voice questioned from under the hood.

She smiled, recognizing the voice as her mentor's boyfriend, Andy. "What are you doing up here?" She pulled a face, "Why are you wearing that?"

His hooded head gazed around nervously before he suddenly grabbed her arm and orbed them both. When they reappeared it was in the large library of Magic School. It appeared most of the family was already gathered around one of the long tables. Wyatt was half asleep on a pile of texts. Phoebe wasn't fairing much better her eyes drifting open and closed a few times as she scanned a thick volume on past lives. Paige was drinking what had to be her twentieth cup of coffee, pacing up and down the length of the table. Piper was calmly sitting on the opposite end from her son, writing notes about something. Prue was over by the shelf, perusing the time travel section.

Molly turned to Andy, frowning. "What's going on?"

"I found out something," he announced to all present. He then shot a teasing grin to Prue. "Sometimes subtle is the way to go."

The former Charmed One turned from the bookcase and wrinkled her nose at him. "Ooh, we'll see."

Wyatt jerked upright from his pillow of books on time travel, paradoxes and quantum mechanics. He blinked rapidly, trying to piece together what his foggy brain had only half-heard. "What? You found something?"

"What is it?" Phoebe asked, setting down her book.

Paige rolled her eyes. "If people would let the man talk, we would probably know already."

Andy smiled at the youngest sister, having grown quite fond of her in the short time since he and Prue had been allowed back in the lives of the other Halliwells. "I know who sent Chris back, and it wasn't the Elders."

"Then who?" Phoebe questioned, frowning in confusion. "Who else has the power to send people through time? Every time we got sent it was because of the Elders."

"I was sneaking around up there, trying to get some leads since they haven't exactly been forthcoming with information, and I heard a couple of the top Elders in deep discussion, and I distinctly heard them say Chris' name. So I trailed them."

"Way to go Columbo," Paige commented approvingly.

Prue couldn't stop a small smile from forming at her baby sister's humor, but forced it down, trying to remain serious and focused. "Andy, get to the point."

"I was able to eavesdrop on their conversation, and as it turns out, they were afraid if they told us the truth they would be punished severely," Andy continued, used to his girlfriend's impatience. "Apparently, The Angel of Destiny ordered them not to say anything."

"Angel of Destiny?" Molly wondered. She'd never heard of such a thing before.

Wyatt's mouth fell open, his eyes wide in shock. "Seriously? As in _the_ Angel of Destiny?"

"Well, isn't that just peachy," Paige griped.

Pheobe let out a breath. "This isn't good. We've come up against the Angel of Destiny before and-"

"-son of a bitch," Piper suddenly cut-in. She had been completely quiet until now, but the news had shattered the calm she had been working so hard to maintain for so long. One of the lamps resting on a nearby table spontaneously exploded.

"Hey," Prue admonished as she moved to her sister's side, putting a hand on her sibling's shoulder. "Hi there, listen, I know you're upset right now, but you need to get a grip and calm down before-"

Another lamp exploded.

Piper's brown eyes darted up to her big sister's face, harsh with anger. "Calm down? The Angel of friggin' Destiny is after my family _again_ , and you want me to _calm down_?"

"Again?" Wyatt asked. "What do you mean again?"

Since it didn't appear Piper was going to calm down enough to answer, Phoebe supplied, "Back when you were little, we were destined to have an ultimate battle, and the only way Piper would be motivated to win was if she lost your dad, so the Angel took him."

"He was originally supposed to die," Paige picked up, "but we summoned the Angel and were able to make a compromise."

Piper snorted derisively. "Some compromise. She took my husband from me for months. She stole him from his children."

"But we got him back, Piper," Paige argued, "just like we'll get Chris back."

Molly couldn't help but ask aloud, "How? If even the Elders are scared of this Angel person, how can we possibly go against them?"

"You don't beat an Angel of Destiny by going against them," Phoebe explained. "You circumvent an Angel of Destiny by finding a new path leading to the same end."

Wyatt wet his lips nervously as he voiced everyone's silent concern. "What if there is no other path? What if the destiny is Chris' death?" His voice dipped as he added, "Like Aunt Prue's."

For a long moment everyone was silent, each trying to develop an argument against the idea. Prue was the one to recover first, her face serious but her eyes soft as she regarded her oldest nephew. "Chris and I may share a lot of similar traits, Wyatt, but dying young is not going to be one of them. I promise you."

The Twice Blessed nodded, but his blue eyes remained dim with uncertainty.

"Well," Paige said, "guess we're summoning an Angel of Destiny. Again."

000

Lucky felt the being enter the attic as soon as he flamed into the manor. Right now, the young boy was alone with his Grandpa Leo. His mom was working the late shift at Grams' restaurant, and everyone else was at Magic School. He and Grandpa had been watching a movie, but Grandpa had fallen asleep half an hour ago and was softly snoring on the couch. He wouldn't notice Lucky disappear up to the attic. He never did.

Orbing up to the attic, Lucky smiled softly at the tall man standing in the corner of the room. He was about the same height as Dad but had short, curly black hair, brown eyes and sharp features. He also had a thin mustache and hair on his chin, but Lucky couldn't think of what that was called.

"Hello, Lucas." The demon tilted his head, regarding the youth almost fondly. "How are you doing?"

"Hi, Nomed," the child answered. He shrugged slightly, his green eyes falling to the floor. "I miss Dad."

"Your family still hasn't brought him back?" Nomed asked, already knowing the answer.

Lucky shook his head. "No, and nobody tells me anything either."

"I've always been honest with you about your father, right?" Nomed reminded the boy. "They wouldn't tell you where he really was, but I did. I know you're a smart, strong boy who could handle the truth."

"I just want to help," Lucky said, frustrated.

"This is why I came tonight," Nomed began, "to give you the opportunity to save your father."

Lucky was terrified at the very thought of losing his dad. He loved his dad so much, and these last months without him had been horrible. The fear of never having his dad back was why he always allowed the demon in the attic even though he knew his family wouldn't like it. Why he kept talking to Nomed and asking for the demon's help. He was willing to do anything to save his dad. Which is why he only asked, "How?"

Nomed gestured toward the Book of Shadows. "In my research, I found out there is a spell in that book that will take you to your father. All you have to do is read the spell, and a portal will appear leading you right to him." A thought suddenly occurred to the demon, "You can read, right?"

The little boy leveled a glare at the demon. He folded his arms indignantly. "Yeah."

"I'll work on the symbol for the portal, and you try to find the spell," Nomed instructed.

Lucky drug one of the chairs from the small table in the room toward the pedestal where the book was setting. He climbed on top of the chair just barely able to peek at the Book of Shadows. He held his tiny hands above the book, focusing on what he wanted to find. The cover flipped open and the pages started turning of their own accord until they landed on a spell with the word time in it. Lucky imagined this was the right one.

Nomed had drawn his family crest on the wall. Lucky was pretty sure his grams wasn't going to like her wall being drawn on. He'd gotten in trouble for using markers on them once when he was little. His grams was pretty scary when she was mad. She'd definitely vanquish Nomed for writing on her walls.

The demon clapped his hands together, trying to dispel the chalk. "All right, Master Lucas. It's ready. All you have to do is read the spell, and you'll be reunited with your father."

Lucky wasn't supposed to do spells or potions without adult supervision. His dad was always really upset when he didn't follow that rule. It was really one of the only times his dad got really mad at him. He bit his lower lip, hesitating. Finally, he decided Dad wasn't here, and it'd be better to have a mad Dad then no Dad at all.

 _"_ _In this time and in this hour I call upon the ancient power. Send me back to where I'll find what I hope in place and time."_

The drawing on the wall illuminated blue pulsing with strong magical energy. Lucky felt instantly drawn toward it. He hopped down from the chair, staring at the swirling vortex he'd made in awe. He'd done it. He'd actually gotten it to work all on his own. His feet slowly moved him toward it, hypnotized by the power coming from it. Power that came from inside of him. He was strong. Why didn't the other adults see it? Why hadn't they let him help? Look at what he could do.

Without fear, without hesitation, Lucky stepped through the portal. He never saw the wicked grin spreading across the demon's face.

000

2004

Chris Halliwell was having a bad day. Okay, so when your big brother is the Ruler of All Evil most days are pretty rough, but this one was more frustrating than he'd had in a long while. Okay, that might not be true either. Since coming to the past and meeting his parents and aunts when they were young, most days had been pretty frustrating. They were all so naïve and inexperienced and selfish. He couldn't believe how much work it took just to get them to do their jobs. To fulfill their destiny. _To save their own nephew_. He'd expected a lot of things when he came to the past but being disappointed in his family wasn't one of them. The women who had taught him about magic and responsibility – about saving the innocent and protecting the weak – were the ones using personal gain magic and flittering about worried about their love lives over the lives of the thousands of people he was trying to save in the future.

They had gotten more helpful since they'd discovered his true identity, but Chris wasn't sure if that made him feel better or worse. After all, what did that really say about all of them? He was the type of man his family would only tolerate once they'd found out he shared their blood – a liar, a manipulator and often a cold, unfeeling soldier. They were the type of people who would treat a stranger trying to help them with contempt, distrust and even violence. They were people who only cared about a situation in relation to how it affected their family.

Chris sighed, leaning back against the cold, hard surface of the cave in the underworld he was currently sneaking around in. Being in the past just made him feel so. . .tired. His double-life as both Wyatt's right-hand and a leader in a resistance against him had been less draining than dealing with the sisters. More specifically, how being around them made him feel.

It was ten times worse now that Piper knew he was her son. Ever since Piper found out, she'd been trying to make up for her previous treatment of him. She would bake him cookies like was a little kid. She kept inviting him to dinner and trying to ask how he was and make small talk. She'd even wanted him to move into the manor, despite not really having a spare room. Instead, she'd purchased new sheets and blankets and a better mattress for his cot in P3. He'd even found random new clothes and money waiting for him there several times. Worst of all, she'd always look at him with those big soft, caring eyes of hers, and he couldn't handle it. He couldn't deal with her affection. It was easier when he was pretty sure she hated him. Even her out-right rejection of him had hurt less. Because the more she cared, the more she tried to dote on him. . .the more he saw his mother looking back at him from this younger version's eyes. Those glimpses were slowly eating him alive.

Hence, his distraction, and the fact he'd slipped up like some amateur, ruining his cover with the Scabbar demons he'd been investigating for the last few weeks. If Bianca had seen him make such a rookie mistake, she would have ripped into him about maintaining focus and not wasting time wallowing in emotions. She'd complain about how reckless he could be sometimes, and how someday it was going to get him killed. Then once the worry passed, she would have smiled at him since it was, after all, his recklessness that had brought them together. God he missed that smile - the one where her face lit up and her brown eyes danced. The one that made his heart skip a beat each and every time he saw it.

He closed his eyes as the utterly familiar wave of pain washed over him yet again. He'd do anything to see that smile right now. To feel her strength and support and love. Just to hold her for even a minute. . .but she was gone. Just like everyone else.

Silently cursing his lack of focus and whirling emotions, Chris pushed off from the wall, deciding he couldn't stay down here any longer. At this rate, he really would get himself killed. He needed to head back to the manor before the Scabbar demons found him. As they'd seen his face now, they'd stop at nothing to find him and kill him. They didn't take kindly to be spied on.

He could sense his mom – No, Piper- and Paige in the hallway of the manor and orbed, hoping one of them would know how to hide him from his pursuers. When he formed in front of them, he couldn't help but notice the overly bright smile Piper immediately put on and the disgusted look on Paige's face as she saw what he was wearing. At least his youngest aunt was fairly consistent in any time.

"Chris. Hi," Piper greeted brightly.

She sounded so much like her future self when she said it. He shook the thought away, trying to keep focused. "Hey, look, I need your help," Chris said, tersely, his face serious. "I think I have Scabbars on my tail."

"Oh," Piper said, her eyebrows lifting. "Well, I have some hydrogen peroxide in my bathroom."

Her adult son frowned at her, annoyed by her lack of understanding. "No. Scabbar demons. I went undercover to follow a lead on who turns Wyatt, but I think they're on to me." When neither woman responded he rolled his eyes. "Alright, I need a cloaking spell just in case. Is the book still in the attic?"

"Yeah," Paige answered, "last I saw."

"You want me to help you?" He vaguely heard Piper ask as he bolted up the stairs to the attic.

Chris pushed away the guilt. He had to keep his distance. Otherwise gone would be the strong soldier on a mission to save the world. In his place, a young boy desperate to please his dead mother.

He took a deep breath, trying to clear his head for the thousandth time and made his way to the pedestal at the back of the room where the Book of Shadows rested. He began to flip through it looking for a cloaking spell, and he'd just found one he might be able to tweak when the wall to his left began to glow a familiar blue. His head snapped up in shock to stare at the whirling portal. He instinctively moved to stand protectively in front of the book as he called out, "Paige, Phoebe, get up here."

His youngest aunt quickly appeared in the door to the attic, his mother waddling as fast as she could behind her. Noticing how Piper's condition affected her, he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. After all, she was pregnant with him. Her discomfort was technically his fault. Again, he shoved down the guilt. He had to be rational about all of this. He shot Piper a look that came off sharper than he intended. "You shouldn't be up here. Go to the nursery where Wyatt's shield can protect you."

"What the hell is that?" Piper asked, ignoring him completely as she pointed to the wall.

"Kinda looks like the portal Chris came through after the whole Bianca-thing." Off the wince Paige caught from her nephew, she added sheepishly, "Sorry."

"Is Wyatt after you again?" Piper questioned, starting to panic. The worry in her eyes almost smothered Chris as she asked, "I thought you took the spell, so he couldn't send anyone else?"

"I did," Chris answered. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, "But he's Wyatt, so you know – he can pretty much do anything. He probably made a new one like he did last time."

Phoebe poked her head into the attic. "Is this an emergency because I really should-"

"-Yes," three voices answered her.

She pouted before noticing the portal on the wall. "Oh, that so can't be good."

"Exactly," Chris agreed. He set his jaw, giving Piper another harsh look, "Which is why you need to leave before whoever he sent steps out." He found himself choking on his long pent up emotions as he explained, "I don't want anything happen to you."

Piper caught the flash of pain in his eyes. It was the first bit of emotion she'd seen from Chris since she'd found out he was her son. She wanted to ask him what was wrong, to explain what he wasn't saying, but was stopped from doing so when a figure emerged from the portal, and she became too shocked to speak.

"Um, in the future do assassins normally look so. . .small?" Paige tossed to Chris.

The person who had come from the portal was a child. A little boy of probably no more than four or five years with a mop of brown hair that fell into striking green eyes. He looked around the attic with a little frown before he spotted Chris, and an excited smile spread across his whole face, his eyes lighting up with joy. He promptly ran full speed toward Chris, throwing his arms around the man's legs and crying out, "Daddy!"

Chris was almost knocked off balance by the force of the child's embrace. As it was, he held his hands up for balance while staring, mouth agape at the tiny human currently clinging to his legs for all he was worth.

Phoebe's eyebrows shot up. "Did he just say Daddy?"

"Chris?" Piper questioned, finally finding her voice. She tried to smile, but it came off fake and a bit worried. "Something you want to tell us?"

Chris' brain wasn't working right now. Was this some sort of weird, twisted trick from Wyatt? Or had magic somehow gone and made his life even more complicated than it already was. When he finally registered what Piper asked, he shot back, "No. No, no, no. He's not mine."

The little boy looked up, a flash of hurt and confusion in his green eyes, "Dad?"

Catching the look in the child's face, Chris flashed to all times his family had rejected him – said he wasn't family, said they didn't want to see him anymore. They failed to recognize their personality and looks in him, and he remembered anew how much it stung. Seeing the little boy's pain matching how he had felt for so many months, seeing his own green eyes staring up at him, Chris quietly admitted, "Uh, maybe?"

Paige raised a brow, folding her arms over her chest. "I'm kinda thinking you would remember having a mini-you running around in the future."

Chris rolled his eyes at his aunt. "Not what I meant. It's just possible he's from further in the timeline than I am. After all, you're what? Four?" Chris asked the child.

The little boy, who had finally removed himself from Chris' person, scowled in an eerily familiar fashion. He held up his hand. "I'm five. What's wrong with you?"

Chris raised his brows at the big attitude from the tiny boy. "Sorry. My mistake."

Noticing the kid still staring at him expectantly, he wet his lips as he plotted out what to say. Then, his master strategist mind finally kicked in, realizing the child had already provided him the answer. He squatted down, making sure he was eye level with the youth. "You're right, though. There is something wrong with me. Obviously you know all about magic, right?" Off a nod, "Then, you know it doesn't always work the way we want it to, right?" Another nod. "Well, see, magic sort of. . .made me forget a bunch of stuff."

"Is that why you didn't come back?" the youth asked, worried.

Chris wasn't sure why his future self would be missing, but he decided to just roll with it. "Yeah. See, something really bad is trying to hurt," he paused, the phrase so totally foreign it took him a minute to get over it, "Uncle Wyatt when he was a baby, so I had to come to the past to stop it. Do you understand what I mean by the past?"

"Like history?"

Chris nodded. "Yeah, like history. Anyway, when I got here, it made me forget about things from back in our time, so I need you to help me remember okay? Can you do that?"

The child nodded.

"Okay, so. . .what's your name?"

"Lucky."

Paige pulled face. "You named your kid Lucky?"

Phoebe smacked her arm, shooting her a disapproving look.

"Oh come on," Paige muttered, "like you weren't thinking it."

Lucky explained, "It had something to do with when I was born. Momma was sick and I got hurt real bad." He shrugged, "They said I was lucky, and it stuck."

Momma. Chris swallowed thickly. He hadn't paused to consider the boy's mother yet. Who was she? Lucky did have darker features like Bianca, but she couldn't possibly still be alive. Not after what Wyatt had done. Yet, part of him hoped beyond reason she had miraculously lived. After all, he couldn't imagine loving anyone else in the future. Couldn't imagine having a child with anyone else. . .not that they'd really discussed kids. Then a thought hit him: Maybe he succeeds in saving Wyatt, and he and Bianca get their happily ever after. They actually have their wedding and a few years later start a family. They have the little boy standing in front of him. That had to be it, right?

Maybe this little boy was a sign that his mission wasn't doomed. Maybe, Lucky truly was as his name suggested – an omen of good fortune. Maybe, just maybe, Chris' day wasn't so bad after all.

TBC. . .


	5. Complicated

AN: Many lines in this are taken from Hyde School Reunion (so can't claim credit for those); however, it will be AU in the sense they don't happen exactly as they do in the show simply because I didn't care for the Phoebe/Paige storyline in that episode and will be largely cutting it out to focus on Chris. Also, I have a new character in the mix, which I figured would justify things changing a bit.

This chapter is dedicated to Callisto Nicol for being such an awesome reviewer. You inspired me to get this chapter finished and posted tonight.

Chapter 5

Complicated

Molly watched nervously as the sisters began preparations for summoning the Angel of Destiny. Prior to tonight, she hadn't even known a being more powerful than the Elders even existed, and the idea of summoning one made a chill run down her spine. Especially when she'd heard the sisters talking about how the being wasn't going to be pleased about it.

Tearing her eyes away from The Charmed Ones, Molly noticed Wyatt sitting in his chair, his face downcast as he stared at his hands which were currently resting in his lap. She barely recognized The Twice Blessed these days. Something had broken in her friend, and his ever present confidence and light had been stamped out. Despite his large, muscular frame, he looked very much like a small, unsure boy right now.

The whitelighter moved over to sit by her friend, a hand lightly touching his arm. "Wyatt?"

Blue eyes darted up to her face, clearly startled from thought. He gave her a thin lipped smile. "Hi. Didn't see you there."

"Are you okay?" she asked before blushing at the stupidity of her own question. "I mean considering?"

"I've potentially lost the two most important people in my life," Wyatt replied, thickly. "No, I'm not okay. I'm not really sure I will ever be _okay_ again. I mean, Chris isn't just my brother. We've always been best friends. Mom said we were completely inseparable by the time Chris was about two, and it hasn't changed in all these years. I can always count on him, and I was pretty sure he felt the same."

"He does," Molly assured him. "He adores you. You're his big brother, his idol. He'd do anything for you. You can trust that won't change. After all, it's why his other version went to the past – to save you because he loved you too much to hurt you."

Wyatt's eyes dropped, and she knew he was wishing his brother hadn't cared quite so much.

"Is Casey talking to you yet?" Molly asked, deciding to change the subject.

The witch let out a caustic laugh. "Not unless telling me to go to hell counts."

"She loves you, and she will forgive you. She's just scared, and we all know how she deals with fear. Anger is just her favorite defense mechanism. It'll pass."

"Maybe," Wyatt conceded with a sigh. "It's just I know that woman better than anyone. I know how she thinks, and right now, this is bringing up everything that happened when Lucky was born, and she's thinking she really can't trust me. She's thinking I hurt her son _again_. I know she's questioning whether she can stay with me."

"Wyatt, what happened when Lucky was born is ancient history and completely not your fault. Firstly, she had a medical condition, so the emotional distress had nothing to do with it. Not to mention, you were under the effects of a potion. She knows you would never betray her of your own free will. She forgave you for that years ago."

"Even though it was Zayel's potion that made me do it, she could never get the images out of her head. What happened traumatized her and just because a person can _know_ something doesn't mean they don't still have powerful feelings to the contrary. She almost bled to death in a parking lot, almost lost her son, because she thought I had cheated on her with a girl she loathed."

Molly squeezed his shoulder lightly. "Oh, Wyatt, I thought you two had worked through this back then. Do you really think she still feels that way?"

"I know we never really got back to how we were before it happened," Wyatt answered. "She has never seen me the same way. Before, I had been the one person who had never hurt her – the one person she believed whole-heartedly _never_ would hurt her. I had been her rock, her good man in a storm. She felt safe and loved, and after. . ." Wyatt ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I'm not stupid – I've always known that's why Casey pulls away every time we talk about the future. She forgave me, but she never completely trusted me, not like before, and my keeping this from her just made it all so much worse." His eyes grew misty, his voice catching as he admitted, "I'm pretty sure I've lost her."

Molly pulled the large man into a tight hug, whispering, "I'm so sorry, Wyatt. I know you're hurting right now, but I promise, you are meant to be together. Please, don't give up hope."

 _"_ _Power of Three, we summon thee, and call to us the Angel of Destiny."_

Wyatt looked over at the sound of his mother and aunts chanting, taking a deep breath to clear his emotions. He couldn't focus on his relationship with Casey right now. His little brother needed him, and he would do absolutely anything for Chris. He'd focus all his energy on saving his sibling. He'd try to mend things with his girlfriend – if he could he still call her that – later. Chris' safety mattered more.

Amongst a swirl of the purest light Wyatt and Molly had ever seen, an elderly gentleman in a white robe with matching hair on the sides of his head, appeared, a slight scowl on his round face as he caught sight of The Charmed Ones. His voice came out tired as he said, "I suppose I should have expected this."

"When you mess with my kid, you're damn right I'm going to summon your ass," Piper snapped. "What is with you people and screwing with my family, huh?"

The old man smiled faintly. "Or perhaps your family is the one continually messing with us, hmm? Especially young Christopher. I warned him there would be consequences to his actions, but he apparently developed your stubborn streak."

"Warned him?" Phoebe questioned. "You mean Chris knew this was going to happen?"

"No, he didn't know the details." The Angel looked annoyed as he added, "Nor did he seem to care."

Wyatt was the first to realize what was really being said. "You mean the other Chris. The one who originally went back. He spoke to you?"

The old man turned to face Wyatt. "Yes. He was desperate to save you, so he and a few of the remaining Elders and Avatars summoned one of us to find out if it was your destiny to be evil." Noticing the look on the young man's face, the Angel offered sympathetically, "It's not. Once Christopher was told, he realized something must have interfered with your true destiny. He questioned if he would be allowed to go back and change it. He was told yes, but he was also warned there would be consequences."

"Like his death?" Wyatt asked softly.

"It's complicated," the man answered vaguely. The Angel then began casually pacing around the room as he delved into the details. "He created a paradox by going back, so obviously, we had to fix the rift in space and time; however, we also had to make sure events happened exactly as they did the first time. Your version of Chris would not have behaved the same way, so we didn't exactly send him back."

Paige narrowed her eyes, "Then where the heck is he?"

The Angel sighed, irritated at being interrupted. "You were wrong. . .about the baby being the same. They're not. They were two different spirits with completely differing destinies. Much like when you met your versions in the parallel dimension – similar looks, thoughts, instincts, but still very different beings. Therefore, in order to fix everything, we had to summon the other Chris' essence – not an easy feat even for us. Luckily, an Angel of Death was able to help us locate him. Then, we had to erase his memories of his first journey and subsequent death and place his essence inside your version, which was a delicate process. It had to be a slow transfer in order to avoid destroying one or both of them. As I'm sure you noticed, toward the end, he was becoming ever more like the original version. When we finished the transfer, we sent him back to the past where the original version is in full control."

"Wait," Prue cut in, "you're saying his spirit was out there somewhere this whole time? Why wasn't he allowed to move on?"

"His destiny was incomplete," The Angel replied simply.

Molly softly questioned, "What is his – or their – destiny then?"

"Now someone is asking the right question," the Angel commented, appreciatively. "Your Chris' destiny was to father Lucky – the reincarnation of Sir Galahad and the truest knight of Wyatt's and Arthur's roundtable. He and his son will both play a key role in the success of the new Camelot. He is not destined to die."

"And my other son?" Piper asked, vindicated in her belief that she'd always had three.

"I do not have an answer regarding the other Christopher as events have been set in motion which split the future too many ways. I cannot see the outcome. He has complicated his destiny beyond even my sight."

Wyatt suddenly cried out in pain, grabbing his head. Before anyone could ask what was wrong, he looked up with pure terror in his blue eyes and gasped, "Casey. . ."

"Go. Hurry," Piper urged. "We've got this."

As The Twice Blessed disappeared in a swirl of blue and white light, the Angel sighed. "So it begins."

000

2004

Knowing the newest time traveler posed no risk and there wasn't much they could do to help at the moment, Phoebe and Paige had departed for the former's high school reunion leaving Piper alone with her son and, apparently, grandson.

Piper had to admit it was overwhelming. She'd only just gotten used to the idea the whitelighter they'd often called neurotic and downright bitchy was her son. She'd only started to wrap her mind around the concept of what his life must have been like to turn him into the secretive, manipulative man who often felt the ends justified the means. What had Wyatt, his own brother, put him through and taken from him? It broke her heart to think of what Chris had endured and lost at the hands of his own family. Still, she felt immense pride too. He'd risked everything to save his big brother rather than take the easy way out. Chris had turned out to be a good man in spite of having been raised by a horrible mother. After all, she had to be a horrible mother to let her oldest son become an evil tyrant while her youngest carried the weight of the world all alone. It also explained why Chris had been avoiding her for weeks. Well, it could also have something to do with how awful she had been to him before she had known who he was. She would never forgive herself for not recognizing her own child. How had she missed it? He looked so much like them, and now, knowing the lengths he would go for his family, Piper was reminded painfully of her big sister, Prue.

The fact they hadn't recognized Chris, hadn't accepted him or even treated him well was probably why Chris was open to the idea Lucky could be his. He didn't want to put his son through what he'd suffered. Though, Piper could tell underneath the calm exterior her adult son was shaken up by the idea of being a father and actually meeting said future child. She would try her best to make this easier on him if she could.

Piper smiled warmly at the little boy. "So, Lucky, how did you get here?"

"I cast a spell," he answered, as though it were obvious.

"Why?" Chris asked from his place on the sofa next to the boy. "Do you have any idea how risky it is to use a time travel spell? It takes immense concentration and focus to pull off. You could have wound up anywhere. Don't I teach you to be careful with magic?"

Lucky shrunk a bit in his spot on the sofa. "I'm sorry, Daddy. I just had to find you, and Nomed said-"

"-Nomed?" Chris questioned sharply. His brow furrowed deeply until he suddenly remembered the name. He looked horrified as he asked, "You were talking to a demon?" When the little boy merely shrugged as answer, Chris shook his head. "Great. Just great. My future self is a terrible father. I mean, seriously, do I teach you _nothing_? Do you understand demons want to kill us? Who knows what the demon was really after. Maybe he was hoping you would get sucked into oblivion."

Piper noticed Lucky looking more upset by the moment and cleared her throat to catch Chris' attention. When he paused in his ranting long enough to look at her, she nodded her head in the direction of the young boy who was the picture of miserable. She softly chided, "Maybe tone it down a bit?"

Chris saw the look on Lucky's face and deflated instantly. He hadn't meant to hurt the kid's feelings. He just couldn't believe his future self wouldn't have taught him better. Or Bianca. Or _Someone_. He opened his mouth to say something to fix it, but nothing was coming to mind. Lucky needed to know what he did was wrong, but Chris didn't want to make him feel worse either. He knew what it was like to have a father who treated you like everything you did was wrong or not good enough, and he wouldn't wish that on anyone, especially not his own son. Suddenly, he remembered something his mother had once told him. "Lucky, magic is a gift, and we can do wonderful, amazing things with it, but it can also be dangerous. It can backfire and hurt us. It can also bring evil into our lives. So we have to be very careful. You can't cast spells without a grown-up's permission, and you can't ever, ever trust a demon, okay? Working with demons is never the answer."

"Good advice," Piper said pointedly, arching a brow at her grown son.

Chris rolled his eyes at her before turning back to Lucky. "So what do you have to say?"

The little boy threw himself at Chris, wrapping his arms around him. "I'm sorry, Daddy."

While still unnerved, Chris didn't stay tense quite as long when his son hugged him this time. Instead as he returned the embrace a little smile formed on his face. It'd been a long time since he'd had someone care about him, and it was fairly obvious his son loved him. Or loved his future self anyway.

Just then, the doorbell rang and Piper's eyes grew wide as she remembered something. "Oh boy."

Before Chris could ask her who she was expecting, the woman was quickly shuffling away saying over her shoulder that she would be right back. He could hear her footsteps on the stairs, which was followed by the front door opening. He could hear her voice then a deep, muffled one responded.

Chris let out a sigh. He didn't have the energy to care who it was right now. He had enough to deal with for the moment. Especially considering a demon had, for whatever reason, convinced his son to time travel, and Chris had no idea how he was going to get the little boy back to his own time.

Since he couldn't return Lucky right away, Chris decided the first thing he needed to do was teach Lucky about the rules of time travel. "Okay, Buddy," he started, a little unsure where the nickname had come from, "we need to set some rules about what you can and can't talk about when you're in the past, okay?"

"Okay."

"Basically, don't tell anyone anything about what our family is like in the future. If you don't see someone here, don't talk about them because they may not be around yet, and we don't want to change something to make them not appear later. Also, don't give any details about the people who are here, like what they do for a job or who they marry or . . . well, just don't talk about the future _at all_."

Lucky raised his hand.

Chris frowned, "Uh, yeah?"

"Then what _can_ I talk about?"

"Just little stuff," Chris answered, frustrated at not having a better answer. Honestly, he'd prefer if the kid said nothing, but he knew that wasn't going to happen. "Tell you what, look to me first before you answer, and I'll tell you if it's okay, understand?"

Lucky scrunched up his nose, shrugging. " _Màs_ _o menos_."

Chris did a double take. The kid spoke Spanish? Granted, Chris had gotten fairly fluent in a few languages in order to coordinate the resistance effort, but he never would've thought he'd use any of them often enough for his son to not only catch on but use a second language as naturally as he just had.

Just then a voice from downstairs called out, "Hello, Chris. Chris. Hello, Chris, can you hear me?"

Chris frowned. The voice sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't place it. He moved to the door to shout down the stairs, "Is someone calling me?"

"Yeah, uh, sweetie, could you come here a sec?" Piper's voice answered.

Chris started to leave to go see what was happening before he remembered he wasn't alone. He looked back at Lucky who was sitting on the sofa, clearly waiting to be told what to do. It was then Chris realized how very not good this situation was. He couldn't leave the boy alone. Not ever. The kid depended on him for everything – even being told when to stay and when to follow. It wasn't like Lucky could fend for himself, so essentially, Chris had just become a single father at the ripe age of twenty-two. How was he supposed to track down the evil responsible for turning Wyatt with a kid to look after?

"Dad?" Lucky wondered, noticing the strange look. "Do you not feel good?"

"Not great," he muttered. He shook his head, holding out his hand. "Nevermind. Let's go see what Piper wants."

"Piper?" Lucky questioned, confused.

Chris didn't answer. Instead, he took the boy's hand and hurried them both downstairs. Lucky was asking him something, but he didn't quite catch what. As they reached the living room where Chris had sensed Piper, he dropped Lucky's hand as he spotted someone he hadn't seen in five years. A man who had meant the world to him, who had been with him and supported him during some of the most difficult times of his life was standing just a few feet away from him.

For the first time since arriving in the past, Chris lost himself in his emotions. A wide smile of joy spread across his face, and he couldn't stop himself from going over and wrapping his arms around one very caught off guard Victor Halliwell. "Grandpa!"

Piper's eyebrows shot up, completely shocked. Chris had treated everyone else in the past with such detachment. To see him so openly affectionate with her father momentarily left her speechless.

Victor, looking a bit uncomfortable, shot his daughter a questioning look. "Uh, did he just call me grandpa?"

Shaking herself out of her momentary stupor, Piper smiled at her father. "Did I mention Chris traveled here from the future?"

"No, you did not," Victor grumbled at her. He turned to look at the grown man who had hugged him and was struck by how very much he looked like his girls. He smiled warmly at his newly discovered grandson. "Hi there. Chris, right?"

Before Chris could answer, Lucky interjected, "I'm hungry."

Victor's gaze switched between Chris and Lucky a few times before landing on Piper. "Let me guess, another version of Chris? Some child version wound up here too?"

Piper couldn't help but give her poor father a sympathetic smile. "Sorry, Dad, no. That's Lucky. He's Chris' son."

Victor's head whipped around to Chris. "Aren't you a little young for that?"

Chris's face reddened to his hairline. " _I_ didn't do it. . .I mean. . .He's not. . ." He let out a breath. "It's complicated."

"Uh-huh," Victor murmured.

Lucky pulled on Chris' coat. "Dad, I'm really hungry."

"And . . .?" Chris drew out, not quite getting why the kid kept mentioning it. After a moment, "Oh, you want me to fix it. Right. Of course. Feeding you is _my_ job." This was definitely going to take some getting used to. He looked to Piper, "Do you have anything I could heat up for him?"

"Actually, why don't we all head to the kitchen, and I can whip us up something to eat," Piper suggested. "We can all enjoy a nice meal, and oh, I don't know . . . talk."

Chris shot her a look but didn't argue. Especially considering his son was already pulling him toward the kitchen, babbling about what he hoped she would make for them, and how he hadn't been this hungry in a long time, and he was pretty sure he had missed supper since he came to the past.

Half an hour later, Piper had finished cooking, and they were enjoying baked chicken, stuffing and vegetables. She smiled as she watched her grown son devour her cooking, obviously enjoying it. It was the first time she'd actually gotten him to stay put long enough to eat. She'd often wondered these past months what he'd been doing for food. She worried about him a lot now, and it pained her she hadn't thought about it much before she'd known who he was.

"That was really good, Grams," Lucky said after swallowing a particularly big bite, which cleaned his plate. "Almost as good as Dad's."

Piper's eyebrows went up in surprise, and she smiled widely at Chris. "You cook?"

Chris paused, his fork halfway to his mouth, suddenly looking very uncomfortable. She was certain he was going to tell her 'future consequences' but instead, he answered almost embarrassed, "No. I can't. Not even a little."

Her face fell in disappointment.

Chris winced. He'd thought about lying. The hopeful, proud look on her face when she thought he had taken up her love of cooking had almost convinced him the lie would be kinder, but he didn't want to lie anymore. Not to mention, she might want to cook with him or something, and it would be a complete disaster. If it couldn't be microwaved, he was hopeless.

"Yes, you can," Lucky argued, clearly confused. "You and Momma cook all the time."

This time, Chris almost choked on the bite of chicken he'd put in his mouth. Bianca was a nightmare in a kitchen. Once when he'd been sick, she thought she'd make him chicken soup and had put the can in the microwave to heat it. He'd woken from a fever induced sleep to hear her cursing up a storm. When he'd stumbled into the kitchen his microwave had been smoking. There was no way she could learn to cook in the future . . . unless it wasn't Bianca Lucky was talking about.

Sensing a change in subject was in order, Victor asked, "So, Lucky, that's an unusual name. Is that your real name?"

The little boy shook his head. "No. My real name is Lorenzo, but no one calls me that unless I did something really bad. If it was just a little bad, they call me Lucas."

Chris blinked numbly. "Did you just say Lorenzo?"

Piper frowned. "Chris, does that name mean something to you?"

"Sort of," he answered, clearly lost in thought. "He's the witch I left in charge when I came back to the past."

"You must be pretty close if you name your son after him," Piper surmised.

"Not really. We trust each other, but he never really forgave me for what happened during the event." Chris turned to Victor explaining, "Actually, after the event is when you and I got close. You were really there for me. You were awesome, Grandpa."

Victor turned to Piper, smiling widely. "Did you hear that? Awesome."

"What event?" Piper asked, ignoring her father for the moment.

Chris tensed, realizing what he'd let slip. "I can't answer that."

"Is this event my fault?" Piper kept pushing. "Is that why you're treating me like a non-person?"

"I can't talk about it," Chris repeated. "It will mess with the future."

Victor cut in, "But you did say I was awesome, right? You can talk about that?"

"Yeah, you're the best. I love hanging out with you," Chris confirmed with a smile.

Lucky let out a long yawn, bored and confused by the adult conversation.

Piper noticed how tired the little boy looked and checked her watch to see it was getting late. A boy his age should be in bed by now. She turned her attention to her grandson, knowing she wasn't getting anywhere with the boy's father. "I think we should get you to bed, Mister."

The child pulled face, whining, "But, Graaaams."

"No buts," she said, ignoring how very disconcerting it was to be called Grams in your thirties. She held out her hand to the child. "I'll get the air mattress ready, and you can sleep in my room. There's plenty of space. We'll come up with a better plan tomorrow. Now, say goodnight and let's get you tucked in."

Lucky looked back at Chris. "You're not going to read me a story?"

"You two go ahead," he answered, feeling just a little guilty at the boy's disappointment. He tried to explain, "I need to get back to the Scabbar demons before they know I'm missing."

Piper cut-in, "Hey, wait, what? And leave your awesome grandpa alone? Why don't you two hang out and grab a beer." She whispered harshly to her father as she guided Lucky upstairs, "Get an answer.'"

Victor pulled two cigars from his coat pocket. "Cubans?"

A little while later, just outside the conservatory, the two men were smoking the cigars. Well, Victor was smoking. Chris wasn't sure what he was doing. His eyes and throat burned, and he felt vaguely sick. He started coughing violently.

"Sorry," Victor said, frustrated with himself. "Bad idea."

"It's cool," Chris said, trying to make him feel better. He was still half choking as he managed to get out, "It's just strong." He paused a moment before advising, "You might want to pick up a different habit, though. To avoid any future complications, if you know what I mean."

"Oh geez," Victor said, throwing down his cigar and following Chris back into the conservatory. "Thanks for the tip. Anyway, I was just trying to help us bond a little, you know?"

"We don't need help bonding. We're cool."

Victor raised a finger in contradiction. "In the future, but I haven't been there yet. I'm feeling a little out of sync here. Trying to live up to my rep."

"With cigars?" Chris asked with a teasing smile. "Sorry, Grandpa, that's not how you did it."

"Did I take you to batting cages?" he guessed.

Chris shook his head, amused. Wyatt had been the athletic one. It was part of the reason Wyatt had been closer to their father growing up. They'd bonded over baseball while Chris had always been a bit of an awkward book worm. "No."

"Strip clubs?"

Disgust marred his features. "God, no."

Victor was looking desperate. "What did I do? You gotta tell me because I am crashing here."

Chris shrugged. "Nothing. You just . . . we talked." Feeling more vulnerable than he had in a long time, Chris shifted nervously on his feet. He had a distinct urge to flee. "I should go. I'm under cover with some demons who are going to be looking for me very soon."

Victor grabbed his arm, halting his movement. "No, no, no wait. Let's talk. We need to talk." He maneuvered the younger man to the love seat, taking the white wicker chair next to him as they sat.

"Let me guess," Chris said, annoyed, "Piper asked you here to find out what's wrong with me, right?"

"She just wants to know why she's such a terrible mother."

If someone had punched Chris in the stomach, it would have had the same effect as those words. All the air seemed sucked from his lungs. He was horrified. How could she possibly think that? "She what? No, no, she's great."

"Then why are you treating her like she doesn't exist?" Victor questioned softly. He leaned forward slightly, catching his grandson's bright green eyes. "Chris, if what we do is talk, talk to me."

Chris struggled for a long moment, trying to decide what to do. He shouldn't say anything. He knew he shouldn't. There were so many consequences, so many things that could go wrong. Not to mention the well of emotions ready to spill over. Thinking about it, thinking about _her_ , hurt so much even after all these years. It was a wound that ran deep and had never fully healed. Still, this was his grandpa - Younger and trying way too hard, but still his Grandpa. His voice thick with emotion, Chris replied, "Because she doesn't exist in my future, okay? She dies when I turn fourteen."

Victor leaned back in his chair, his eyes marked with horror and shock as he realized, "That? That's the event?"

Chris nodded, swallowing hard to try to get a grip on himself. He didn't trust himself to speak.

"How?" Victor asked, unable to hide the deep sorrow and sympathy in his tone.

Chris closed his eyes against the painful memory, feeling his chest constrict as the images replayed in his mind's eye. Two pairs of brown eyes, normally so warm and loving were cold and lifeless staring up at him. His mother's crumpled, broken body at the bottom of the stairs, and the other body next to her . . . god, her pretty, youthful face forever marred in terror and blood.

"Chris?" Victor prodded gently.

The witchlighter pursed his lips, struggling to reign in his emotions. He could feel his eyes getting watery and felt embarrassed and frustrated with himself. "I can't, alright? I've already said way too much. The point is after I save Wyatt, I have to go back to where she isn't. I can't get close to her because I don't want to lose her again."

"Maybe that's all the more reason to get close to her," Victor argued.

Chris didn't say anything, staring down at the floor.

"Wait, you said this Lorenzo person never forgave you for the event," Victor suddenly remembered. "How does he relate to your mother?"

"He doesn't," Chris responded numbly. Still reeling, he found himself saying, "It was his daughter."

Victor frowned. "His daughter? You mean she died in the event too?"

Chris nodded, closing his eyes.

"Why? Who was she?"

Chris didn't respond immediately, too lost in memory. He hadn't thought about her in so long. He hadn't allowed himself to think about her because it hurt way too much. She had been his best friend since they were little. She'd been the one person who always picked him above Wyatt. She always believed in him and stood up for him. She'd been his first kiss. Now, her memory was forever entwined with the very worst day of his life.

With a voice full of unspeakable sorrow, Chris said, "Her name was Casey, and she died because of me."

Chris had no idea how much that name would haunt him soon.

TBC. . .


	6. When You're Gone

Thanks so much to Anthony and Callisto Nicol. You guys have been feeding my muse, and she says thank you :)

Chapter 6

When You're Gone

2026

Climbing up the stairs to the old Victorian manor on Prescott Street, Casey hadn't felt this tired in years. She could barely catch her breath as she reached the door and went to get her keys out of her purse. It was like her chest was too tight to allow the air in. She supposed she had caught a chest cold or something because the service at the restaurant hadn't been any more hectic than normal. Either that or the high emotional tension she'd been living with every day for months was finally having a physiological effect now.

Unlocking the door and opening it as quietly as she could, the young woman slipped inside and shut it behind her with equal care. She noticed with a faint smile the television was on in the living room and soft snoring was flowing from the couch. It seemed Leo had passed out watching a movie.

She moved over to him, her smile growing at the image of the former elder leaned back on the couch, his head turned at an awkward angle against the cushions. He looked peaceful for the first time in a long time. With his face serene, he looked younger in this moment, and Casey was instantly reminded of her boyfriend. Sadness washed over her. As angry and hurt as she still felt, she couldn't deny how much she missed Wyatt.

Leo shifted in his sleep, shivering slightly.

Casey turned off the television and moved to grab the blanket from the back of the couch and gently covered Leo with it. It was the least she could do for the man who had helped raise her after her father had died and her mother had disowned her.

Leaving the man sleeping, she quietly crept away and up the stairs. As she always did when she got home from a late shift, she went directly to her son's room to check on him. Even if she couldn't tuck him in at night, she had to at least see him before she had any hope of sleeping herself. Though he wouldn't admit it, Lucky was a little afraid of the dark, so he insisted his door stay open at least a crack, so the light from the hallway could permeate the darkness. Pushing the door the rest of the way open, Casey found to her utter dismay her son wasn't in his bed.

It seemed her son hadn't behaved for his grandfather and was playing hooky on bedtime. She noted with agitation the light was on in the attic. He'd apparently snuck up there after Leo had fallen asleep. Lucky loved looking at the Book of Shadows, almost like a bedtime story, so she was sure he was up there on the couch doing just that.

"Lucky," she softly called as she went up the steps to the attic, "what do you think you're doing up here this late at night?"

When the mother pushed open the attic door her frustration with her son's mischievous streak instantly gave way to complete and total horror. Part of the attic wall was glowing blue in what surely had to be some sort of magic portal, and she was just in time to see her son walk straight into it. A man dressed in black was standing next to the portal, and when he caught sight of her in the doorway he shot her a smug grin before tossing a fireball at her head.

Flicking out her hands, Casey froze the fireball a few inches from her face before diving behind the old sofa as he sent two more hurtling toward her. She peered around the corner of the couch, and felt a sharp panic run through her veins as she saw the portal was no longer open. Fueled by rage and fear, she gestured with her hands freezing the demon. Unfortunately, it only lasted a few seconds before he fought out of it and sent a barrage of fireballs in her direction. She ducked back behind the sofa, but a fireball tore through the old fabric and straight into her back left shoulder. She cried out in pain, the impact bringing her to her hands and knees. Knowing she was outmatched, she screamed, "Wyatt!"

It took only seconds for a column of blue and white lights to sift down from the attic ceiling. The Twice Blessed spotted the intruder first, but before he could vanquish the dark haired demon, the assailant flamed away, apparently not feeling suicidal.

Wyatt turned around in time to see Casey crawl out from behind the sofa, a large, angry burn on her shoulder. She was wincing with every movement, tears in her eyes. He rushed to her side, falling to his knees and raising his hands over the wound. A soft golden glow sprang to life, and the wound quickly healed, but the woman was still crying.

Forgetting everything that had happened between them the last few months Wyatt pulled the tiny woman into his arms and stroked her silky hair. "Shhh. It's ok. I'm here now. You're safe. I would never let anything happen to you."

She shook her head and pulled away, her delicate features marred with complete panic. "He's gone, Wyatt. He . . . I don't know . . ."

"Right," he tried to soothe her, his thumb lightly wiping away her tears, "he's gone. You don't have be afraid."

She pushed his hand away, shaking her head fervently, her eyes wild. "Not the demon – _Lucky_." Her voice was breaking as she struggled to get the words out. "L-Lucky is g-gone." She broke into full sobs, clinging to Wyatt's shirt with desperate little fists, her face buried in his chest as she continued to rant incoherently in Spanish between the gasps.

Wyatt grabbed her shoulders pulling her back. He caught her tear stained face in his hands, feeling his heart break at the sight of her so distraught. "What do you mean Lucky is gone? Casey, you need to calm down. I don't understand you."

She tried to breathe but every gasp seemed to burn her chest, and she could only manage short, shaky inhales. She knew she was having a panic attack. She'd had enough of them throughout her life to recognize the sharp pain in her chest, the shaky feeling in every limb and the total and complete inability to think rationally as icy fear filled every fiber of her being. She tried to will it away. Lucky needed her. She couldn't crumble. Not yet.

She squeezed her eyes shut, willing her mind to stop imagining every horrible thing that could have happened to her son. When she opened her eyes she caught Wyatt's cerulean pair looking so lovingly and worriedly down at her that she lost herself in his gaze. She focused on it, feeling calmer as she gleaned strength from his mere presence. She let out a shaky breath. "I came up here and saw Lucky walk through some sort of portal. I think the demon that attacked me tricked him into going through it."

"Portal?" Wyatt repeated, running through what he knew about various types of portals. He was still running it through his mind when he noticed the Book of Shadows was open and a chair had been pulled over to the pedestal. He helped Casey to her feet before moving over to the book to see it open to a time travel spell. His heart stopped as he read through it. "Oh no. No, no, no."

Casey peered over his shoulder, trying to get a glimpse at the spell. Her hand moved to her mouth in shock as she realized the implications. She turned to Wyatt for confirmation. "It was a time portal? He cast a spell to go through time?"

Wyatt nodded gravely. He pursed his lips trying to think of a way to explain this particular spell without completely terrifying her. He took her hands, locking his eyes on her face, trying to convey as much support and love as he could. "The spell Lucky cast . . . it's very difficult. The way it's written is vague which allows the caster a lot of leeway in what they use for a reference point. For an experienced witch, it can allow them to go back to a very specific point in time."

"And for a little boy who is very powerful but completely inexperienced?" Casey asked, the tears already reforming as she guessed the answer.

"Without concentrating on a specific instance or event," Wyatt began, his own breath hitching, "it could lead nowhere."

Tears poured from her eyes as Casey shook her head in denial. "No, that didn't happen. He's fine. He's just somewhere in the future or the past or _somewhere_. My son is not lost, Wyatt. He's not."

Wyatt pulled her back against him, squeezing his own eyes shut, trying to stay strong for her when he felt every bit as scared as she did. He kissed the top of her head, murmuring, "We'll find him. Somehow. I promise you."

Casey pulled her head back, an idea written on her expression. "Wait. What if you cast the spell focusing on Lucky? Wouldn't that take us to him?"

The Twice Blessed had never felt quite as powerless as he did right now, seeing the desperate hope in her eyes. He would have done anything for her, but what she was asking was impossible. "It doesn't work that way. If he's . . ." he couldn't bring himself to say the word, "there wouldn't be anywhere for us to go."

"Why would he do this? Why would he let that demon convince him to do this? What was he thinking? He's so smart, and we've taught him his whole life to be careful with his magic. I don't understand. I know he's been scared and confused and hurting since Chris . . ." she drifted off, her eyes going wide with realization. "Chris. That's it. That's where he is."

"What did you just figure out?"

Casey's face was lit with excited optimism as she explained, "He cast the spell to take him to Chris. He was trying to find his father. It's the only explanation that makes sense. It's the only reason he would ever let a demon talk him into doing something. So, he's not lost, Wyatt, he's with his Dad. If you cast the spell we can just go bring him back."

Wyatt shook his head, pained to have to take away her hope. "No. We can't. If what you're saying is true, he's somewhere in 2003 or 2004 with a Chris who remembers absolutely nothing about our lives. We were just talking to the Angel of Destiny when you called for me. He confirmed our Chris is not in control right now. It's the original Chris running the show back there. If he were to see me, he'd probably try to kill me. Not to mention the balance of power being completely thrown off."

"So I'll go alone," the woman stated as if it were simple. "I'm not a particularly powerful witch, so I won't tip the scales. I don't think Chris would hate me in the other world either, so I'll go and bring Lucky back before he can interfere with the past. You just need to cast the spell."

Wyatt bit his lip, dreading his next words. "I can't do that."

The woman shook her head, confused. "Of course you can. You're you. You can do anything."

"I mean, I _won't_ do that," Wyatt quietly clarified, wincing at the hurt, confused look in her soft brown eyes. "It's too dangerous. I have no idea where to send you. It's too big a window. Not to mention this spell is a one way door. It only goes back in time. I'd be stranding you somewhere without the power to get home."

"We can narrow it down," she argued, desperately. "Chris and Lucky aren't supposed to be in that time. You'd just have to focus on the two of them together in the past. Use them as your anchors."

Wyatt closed his eyes, unable to take seeing her pleading, frantic gaze. "Case, I can't. I'm sorry. Without an actual date or event or something specific I could land you months from when Lucky got there, and besides, how would you get home?"

He opened his eyes as he felt her hands grab fistfuls of his shirt. She was looking up at him with new tears. Her voice was softer than he'd heard in years as she begged, "Please, Wyatt. I know I've been awful these last months. I was scared and angry and hurt, and I took all of it out on you. I'm so sorry. I love you. I love you so much, and I know you love me too. Please, help me. Please. Don't say no."

The Twice Blessed took a breath, fighting back the torrent of emotions running through him. He'd been hoping for this moment for weeks now. Praying she'd come around, and here she was telling him how much she loved him. Begging him to help her. "I love you more than you know," he replied, brushing her hair, damp with tears back behind her ear. "Which is why I won't do anything to put you in danger. Just give me some time to develop a new spell. One that goes both ways, and I promise I'll cast it, and you can get Lucky back."

"How long?"

"A week maybe," he guessed.

She shook her head. "No. I can't wait that long. Wyatt, my son is back in the past, and even if he's with Chris he's not with his Dad. He's with a man who might not have any idea who he is. He's going to be scared and confused, and he's going to feel so alone. Please, Wyatt, cast this one. Send me back _now_."

He opened his mouth to try to convince her to wait, but she had captured his mouth with hers, silencing his protest the most effective way she knew how. It was a pleading, frantic kiss, but he'd missed her so much he couldn't help but return it. The feel of her tiny frame pushed up against him made his mind fuzzy. He'd missed the way her lips tasted like watermelon lip balm . . . only the taste was mingled with warm, salty tears as her hands clung to him not in passion but desperation, as if his shoulders were the only things keeping her upright.

His heart shattered at her pain, and he pulled away, his hands gently cupping the sides of her face. Wyatt saw every ounce of fear in her brown eyes, and the way she was looking at him was as if he was her only hope - her hero. He hadn't been her hero in so long . . . His resolve was gone. He hadn't really expected it to hold out. He loved this woman with every part of himself. He could deny her nothing. "Okay. I'll do it."

She threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in his chest. "Thank you, Wyatt."

After allowing himself just to hold her for a moment, The Twice Blessed reluctantly moved from Casey's embrace, turning toward the Book of Shadows. He read the spell silently again, trying to imagine how best to use it. He silenced his mind, focusing with all his power on where he wanted the portal to open. Chris and Lucky in the past together. Once he felt somewhat confident he had a firm hold on the idea, he solemnly read, " _In this time and in this hour, I call upon the ancient power. Send me back to where I'll find, what I hope in place and time._ "

Instantly the chalk outline of the triquetra on the wall flashed blue, the whirling energy strong and stable.

Casey took a breath to calm her nerves. She stamped out the tears in her eyes with the palms of her hands then turned to Wyatt. She put her hands on either side of his worry creased face and smiled reassuringly. "I'm going to be okay. I'll be with the Charmed Ones. They'll get us home. You know they will."

"Please," Wyatt begged, his voice cracking, "be careful."

She pulled his face down to hers, kissing him slowly and softly this time. She rested her forehead against his as she promised, "I'll be home before you know it." She pulled back, a little grin on her face. "After all, I can't let you pick our new place alone, right? God only knows what kind of kitchen you'd leave me to deal with."

The Twice Blessed broke into a smile. "You're serious? You want to live together?"

She kissed him again to seal it. "I love you, Wyatt Matthew Halliwell. Once I have Lucky back safe and sound, you and I are going to start a new future together. I swear."

Then, before she lost her nerve, Casey turned and hurried through the portal.

A swirl of lights appeared a moment later forming into Molly, who glanced around the attic wearily, obviously looking for a demon. She caught Wyatt's emotion filled face and hurried to his side. "What happened? Where's Casey?"

He swallowed thickly. "Lucky cast a spell to go back in time to Chris. I just sent Casey after him."

The whitelighter's pale face grew completely white. She shook her head in complete horror. "Oh, no, Wyatt, what have you done? We were warned _not_ to let her go back. I was told under no uncertain terms it would change our future. I told you that months ago. What were you thinking?"

Wyatt turned to his friend, his blue eyes sharp. "I was thinking the woman I love was begging me to help her. The woman who has always been fiercely independent and strong and stubborn was breaking down right in front of me, and I couldn't handle it. I haven't seen her like that since her dad died, Molly. It was killing me, so yeah, for once, I was thinking damn the consequences."

Molly let out a sigh, staring at the chalk outline of the triquetra on the wall. "If only we had any idea what consequences this might bring. . ."

000

2004

As Chris orbed to the back room of P3 and flopped down on the cot, he was positive he hadn't been this drained in years. Today had been a complete and total emotional rollercoaster. His talk with Victor had left him raw, and when they had gone upstairs to see what Paige needed, he'd run into his mother, and somewhere between her questioning his ability to vanquish some stupid Scabbar demons and their worrying about Phoebe's idiotic mishap with a spell, he'd let more slip about the future. He'd gotten too emotional, and she'd read the truth in his eyes. Victor couldn't help it when he confirmed his daughter's premature death.

Piper had taken the news fairly well. It unnerved Chris how calmly she just accepted her own plight. He supposed after what had happened to his Grams and his Aunt Prue, his mother just sort of expected it. Still, instead of worrying about herself or asking how to stop it, she'd focused on him. She was concerned about how he'd been living with the information, carrying around her memory with him his entire time in the past. In that moment, she hadn't just resembled his mother. She had become his mother. When she'd started using that tone with the soft, maternal gaze and telling him to save his protesting since nothing was going to happen to her any time soon, he couldn't help himself. It came out so automatically. He called her mom.

Part of him was scared of what she would say or feel about the title, but when his eyes darted anxiously to her face, he saw her giving him a huge, radiant smile. His mother's smile had always been able to light up a room. She was giving off that megawatt smile, her eyes dancing with joy simply because he'd finally opened up to her. He vowed he would never push her away again. No matter how much pain it caused him later.

Chris put one arm behind his head, closing his eyes. Tonight, he planned on actually sleeping instead of researching or tailing demons. He was exhausted, and he knew after the events of the day, he'd pass out soon and hopefully, it would be a dreamless sleep instead of the usual nightmares.

Just as he started drifting off, the witchlighter could hear the all too familiar jingle of orbs. He panicked for a moment, thinking perhaps Piper had called for Leo and told him the truth. He really couldn't deal with the elder today. Preferably, he wouldn't have to deal with Leo at all.

Chris' eyes shot open, and he took in the room with a quickness years of training had taught him, but he didn't see Leo or anyone else. Then again, he wasn't used to looking for threats so low to the ground, which is why it took him a minute to catch sight of the bright green eyes staring at him from about four feet off the ground.

Lucky was standing by the side of the cot. Even in the dark, it was obvious the child was distressed. His eyes were wide and fearful, his lower lip was quivering. He was fidgeting as he silently stared at him.

"Lucky, hey, what are you doing here?" Chris asked, sitting up. "Why aren't you at the manor sleeping?"

The child's voice was tiny as he admitted, "I had a bad dream."

"Oh," was all Chris could think to say. He ran a hand through his hair trying to remember what his mom had used to tell him when he'd been little and woke up from a nightmare. He realized he hadn't ever gone to his mom. She'd always had so much going on, and was always so stressed trying to raise he and Wyatt alone. He tried not to burden her with his problems if he could at all help it. He'd actually gone to Wyatt when he had nightmares. Back then his brother had still cared about him and had protected him in a non-psychotic, power-hungry kind of way.

"Can I sleep with you?"

Chris' brows shot up. "Uh. . ."

"I couldn't find you again," the child started rambling, tears welling in his eyes. "It was dark, and I was running, and a demon was after me, and I was yelling for you, but you didn't come, and I kept running and looking for you, but I couldn't find you, and the demon said you were gone, and you weren't ever coming back, and then his big red hand grabbed me. I couldn't orb."

As the child started to cry, Chris felt at a total loss. He had no idea what to do. He tentatively reached out a hand to the little boy's shoulder. "Hey, I'm right here. It's okay. A demon is not going to get you."

"So can I sleep in your bed tonight?"

Chris wanted to say no. It was a small cot, and while he was fairly confident Lucky really was his son at some point in the future, he didn't really know him. He didn't feel like his father. He cared about the kid, but he hadn't raised him yet. Still, the little boy was looking at him like he hung the stars and moon. Like he was some sort of super hero. He didn't have the heart to let him down. "Uh. . .sure?"

It took seconds for the five year old to climb up in the bed, accidentally kneeing the older witchlighter in the process, who sucked in a sharp breath and closed his eyes at the pain. After the pain subsided, Chris laid back down. He couldn't help but feel a bit amused when Lucky immediately yanked on his arm until he could put his head on Chris' shoulder. He hadn't asked or even wondered if it was okay. Apparently, Lucky felt close enough to him to just treat Chris' arm and shoulder like his own personal property.

It took only minutes for the child to fall into a deep sleep. Chris could feel his tiny body get heavy, his breathing deep and rhythmic. Looking down at Lucky's peaceful face, Chris was struck by how much the boy looked like a young version of himself. Then the child smiled softly in his sleep, and Chris' heart constricted painfully as an image of a different face sprang to mind with an identical smile.

The tiny teen was always sitting on her porch steps, her face buried in a book while her long mahogany hair cascaded over her shoulders. When she'd eventually notice him staring at her, she'd look up at him with a loving, teasing glint in her eyes before breaking into a gentle smile . . .the same smile Lucky had.

Chris let out a shaky breath willing the thought away. It was ridiculous. Casey had been dead for eight years. Killed by the same warlock who had taken his mother from him. He was only thinking about her because of his talk with Victor.

Still, now he'd started thinking about her, he couldn't seem to stop. He remembered the way she used to pull her ponytail tighter when she was nervous, and how completely oblivious to the rest of the world she'd get when reading. How sometimes she would start laughing and couldn't stop, which would then make him laugh. How her hair smelled like mango and was so incredibly thick and soft. How it felt to kiss her. He smiled fondly as he remembered how her lips always tasted like watermelon.

Then, like always, everything he had loved about her was destroyed in an image of her lying on the floor of the manor in a puddle of her own blood. Her normally tanned skin was sickly white. Her brown eyes were frozen in pain and terror.

Chris gently removed Lucky from his arm and slid off the bed. He covered the boy with the blanket before heading over to sit in the chair by the desk. He pulled out some of the notes he'd made from the Book of Shadows. He wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight after all.

000

2004

Piper smiled as she walked into the kitchen to find Chris and Lucky both at the table eating cereal. The latter was talking at a mile a minute about some sort of cartoon show he liked, and to his credit, her son was truly trying to listen, despite clearly having no idea what the child was talking about. She also noted the little boy was wearing different clothes than he'd had on yesterday, and she wondered where they'd come from. Then again, Chris seemed to have a whole wardrobe in the past, and she doubted he'd brought it with him. She made a mental note to question him about that later.

"Hey, Mom," Chris greeted warmly.

His mother smiled brightly, another rush of happiness washing over her. It hadn't been a fluke. Chris was really going to let her in his life. "Good morning."

With his mouth completely full, Lucky garbled, "Hi, Grams."

"That's rude," Chris chastised. "Chew and swallow first. Then talk."

The little boy ducked his head, his big green eyes peeking up at her from under a thick curtain of brown bangs. He looked the picture of innocence. "Sorry, Grams."

"It's okay," Piper couldn't help but chuckle. She had a feeling Chris was going to give her the same puppy-dog look, and she wondered how her future self had ever managed to stay upset with him long enough to discipline him. Or was it would manage? It was too early in the morning to figure out the verbs.

Grabbing both his and Lucky's bowls and spoons, Chris moved to the sink to wash them out. As he did so, he asked, "So, when is the appointment again?"

Piper frowned, trying to think. "Appointment?"

Chris grabbed a towel and started drying off the now clean dishes. He turned to face his mother. "You know," he gestured vaguely at her stomach with the hand holding the towel, "for us."

"You mean the sonogram?"

Chris nodded while Lucky asked, "What's a sunny-gram?"

"Sonogram," Piper repeated more slowly. "It's to get pictures of the baby and make sure he's healthy." Turning back to Chris, "Not that I'm totally convinced it's necessary given I can see you're fine. "

"I think it'd probably be a good idea," he said.

Piper suddenly felt an intense panic. Her voice came out sharp with worry. "Why? Does something happen?"

Chris shrugged. "I don't know. Just saying it's the _normal_ thing to do."

"Tomorrow at three," she answered with a sigh. "Paige said she'd take me."

"Why isn't Grandpa Leo taking you?" Lucky asked from the table. "He'd wanna see Dad's sun-o-gram, right?"

"Sonogram," Chris corrected before adding bitterly, "and no, he probably wouldn't."

Piper took a deep, sad breath before maneuvering herself into the chair next to her grandson. She offered Lucky a weak smile. "Your grandpa isn't here right now, Sweetie. He's Up There being an elder." She frowned, suddenly realizing the implications of his question. "Wait. Is your grandpa around in your future? Like in the manor?"

"Yeah," Lucky answered confused, "or magic school. He teaches one of my classes. Uncle Wyatt does the harder ones. I think it's cause he can actually show us what he's talking about, but Grandpa can only talk."

Chris swallowed thickly. "Did you say Wyatt is a teacher at magic school?"

Lucky rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and he's always lecturing me at home too." The child's voice became mocking, "With all our powers we have to be extra careful, Lucky. Magic is a huge responsibility, Lucky. Remember the wiccan rede, Lucky. We don't turn people into lizards, Lucky." The child narrowed his eyes. "I did that one time, and he never stops talking about it. Blah, blah, blah."

Chris Halliwell was not taken by surprise very easily. The fact his Ruler of All Evil brother apparently becomes annoyingly preachy about the rules and responsibilities that come with using magic had shocked him to his core. He couldn't picture it. Wyatt, who had told Chris repeatedly the only thing that mattered was power, would someday be drilling it into his nephew's head that power was to be used carefully. The man who had used his powers to not only punish but outright kill was upset a little boy turned someone into a lizard. Wyatt was actually good in the future, and as much as Chris had dreamed of having his brother back and sane and _good_ , he couldn't truly believe it possible.

A huge smile suddenly spread over Lucky's face. He disappeared in a swirl of orbs calling out excitedly, "Momma!"

"Ooh, no," Piper said, rising from her chair as quickly as her condition allowed. She waddled over to Chris and smacked her son on the arm to snap him out of his daze. "Follow him. Hurry."

Locking onto Lucky's essence, Chris was surprised to find the little boy hadn't gone far. He'd just orbed up to the attic, which is where Chris and Piper appeared a moment later. They arrived just in time to see a portal close on the wall, and a woman with her back to them was crouched down hugging Lucky tightly.

 _"_ _Qué pensabas, Lucerito? Dígame."_ The woman was holding his little face in her hands, her voice breaking with emotion. "Do you have any idea how scared I was? Anything could have happened to you. You know better. Your dad has told you a hundred times –no spells without adult supervision."

That voice. Chris felt his heart jump into his throat. He knew that voice. It was more mature, but so achingly familiar . . . but it wasn't Bianca.

Lucky pulled away from the woman looking sheepish. " _Siento_ , Momma. Just nobody would tell me anything, and I missed Daddy so much, and I had to find him. I knew I could," Lucky gestured over to Chris, "and I did."

The woman suddenly rose and very slowly turned around to see where her son was pointing.

Chris felt like his heart had stopped, frozen in his too tight chest. He tried to breathe through the hurricane of emotions suddenly overwhelming him, but it was like someone had popped his lungs, and they'd become incapable of holding air. He was pretty sure he was in clinical shock.

The same long mahogany hair cascading down her shoulders. The same tiny frame but developed with womanly curves. The same big, doe brown eyes looking affectionately back at him from a soft, delicate face. Then she smiled. . . and he knew.

With a voice so much younger and more timid than anyone in the room had ever heard from Chris before, he whispered, "It's not possible."

The young woman moved toward him, relief and love and a thousand other emotions playing on her pretty face. A face that had plagued his nightmares for eight years, accusing him of failing her, of letting her die. "Chris, it's really you. Thank God you're okay."

"I can't. . ." Chris shook his head, the pain and hope and confusion suffocating him. He took a step back from her, his vision blurry with tears he would never allow to fall. "You're not Casey. She's . . . you can't be real."

Before anyone could say another word, Chris went up in a swirl of orb lights.

Lucky, noticing the sadness creep onto his mother's face took her hand and tried to comfort her. "It's okay, Momma. He didn't know who I was either." He shrugged lightly. "You get used to it."

TBC . . .


	7. Gives You Hell

Callisto Nicol - I think I failed you on the updating quickly part for this chapter, but hopefully, you enjoy the mass confusion of time travel and alternate timelines in this section. :)

Anthony - Thanks for your review, and I must say, I am super impressed with your memory. That line is incredibly important in this story, but I'm not going to say what it applies to just yet ;)

Chapter 6

 _"_ _I can't. . ." Chris shook his head, the pain and hope and confusion suffocating him. He took a step back from her, his vision blurry with tears he would never allow to fall. "You're not Casey. She's . . . you can't be real."_

 _Before anyone could say another word, Chris went up in a swirl of orb lights._

 _Lucky, noticing the sadness creep onto his mother's face took her hand and tried to comfort her. "It's okay, Momma. He didn't know who I was either." He shrugged lightly. "You get used to it."_

Casey looked down at her son and couldn't help but smile. She should have known he was just fine. Her child was nothing if not resilient. A trait he'd definitely gotten from his father.

Although it seemed this version of his father wasn't holding up very well. As soon as Casey had seen him she'd known he wasn't her Chris. He didn't have the same relaxed, cocky stance she had grown up seeing. This Chris had been rigid, on guard, like he was ready to flee or fight at a moment's notice. His eyes were so much harder and older even underneath the obvious pain and shock her presence had wrought. This Chris had obviously survived hell, but still, the mere sight of her had pushed him over the edge.

"Alright, future girl," Piper said sharply, "care to tell me what just happened?"

The younger woman reluctantly turned to find the Charmed One in full momma bear mode. Her arms were folded over her chest, her fingers tapping impatiently on the tops of her arms as she glared at the person she deemed responsible for sending her son into emotional turmoil. There was not a force on this planet more frightening than Piper Halliwell on the war path.

"I wish I could," Casey started, keeping her eyes trained on the other witch's hands, watching nervously for signs she was about to get blown to pieces. "I don't know why he reacted that way. I don't know enough about his timeline to even guess."

Piper frowned. "Come again? What do you mean _his_ timeline?"

"Lucky and I are from the changed future," Casey explained. "The one Chris created by coming here and saving Wyatt."

The Charmed One lowered her arms, her eyes going soft. "You mean. . .we do it? Wyatt's okay?"

Casey nodded, smiling softly. "He's perfect. I promise." Then, she let out a deep breath explaining, "It just came at a cost. See, Chris creates a paradox when he saves Wyatt, so _our_ Chris ended up vanishing right when this Chris would have left for the past to fix it. They're somehow linked together."

Piper suddenly looked at Lucky then back to his mother and asked, "So, you're not from further in the timeline? You're from 2026 too?"

The younger witch suddenly felt uneasy. She had a feeling she wasn't going to like where this conversation was going. "Um, yeah . . . why?"

"Seventeen?" Piper shrieked. "He has a baby at _seventeen_?"

Casey winced, feeling a very strong sense of déjà vu. Only the first time Piper had found out about the pregnancy, she'd at least known who Casey was and cared about her. Right now, the younger woman had no such safety net. This was not going to be good.

"I can't believe this. I can't believe in seventeen years I'm going to be a grandmother. What is the matter with you two?" Piper asked, throwing her hands up in frustration. Her wild gesturing caused the corner of the cabinet to explode into chunks, flying through the air. Both Casey and Lucky just ducked, long used to Piper's powers wreaking havoc on the furniture.

Lucky whispered to his mother, "Grams looks like she did that time I got mad and orbed Grandpa Leo to China. You guys are in troooooouble."

"Lucas," his mother warned.

He just shrugged and smiled innocently back at her. "Just saying."

"Yeah, well don't."

Piper was still ranting, "You were just kids. You're _still_ just kids." She paused, freezing in place for a moment to ask, "How old are you anyway? "

"Twenty-two," Casey reluctantly answered.

"Twenty-two," Piper repeated, shaking her head. "How did this happen?" She waved off her own question, "I mean I _know_ how it happened. Just explain to me how you convinced my son to do something so monumentally stupid because at this point I'm blaming you, Missy."

Casey held up her hands. "Okay, Mrs. Wyatt, I need you to calm down and remember it's already over and done. After all, the baby is standing right next to me five years old and happy and healthy, so clearly, Chris and I took responsibility for our actions. I can't tell you more than that, or I risk it not happening."

Piper let out a huff before her eyes drifted to her grandson, and the last of her shock and anger were instantly erased. She would never wish this sweet, adorable little boy away. No matter the circumstances. She sought out the other woman's eyes and relented, "Fine."

"Okay then, as much fun as it was for me to relive the terrifying experience that was you finding out about my teenage pregnancy, I need to find Chris and explain what's going on," Casey said. "Could you, please, watch Lucky for me?"

"Yes," Piper replied slowly, "but what makes you think Chris wants to see you? He didn't exactly react well to you being here."

"True, but I have to try. Chris is my best friend, and he's Lucky's father, and he looked like he was in so much pain. I think if I can just tell him what's going on, it'll help."

"How do you plan on finding him?"

Casey turned to Lucky. "Lucky, can you sense him?"

Her son closed his eyes for a minute before nodding. When he opened them, he wrinkled his nose. "You aren't gonna like it."

"He's on the damn bridge, isn't he?" Casey muttered.

Lucky's eyes went wide. "Momma, you said a bad word."

"Sorry, yes, I did. Sometimes, grown-ups use bad words when they're scared or frustrated."

Lucky nodded understanding. "It's okay. I know you are super scared of heights. You can say another bad word if you need to, and I won't tell. Dad says a lot of bad words, and I don't tell on him."

"Oh does he now?" both Piper and Casey questioned at the same time.

The little boys' eyes went wide, and he covered his mouth with his hands while shaking his head repeatedly.

"Spend a lot of time together in the future, do we?" Piper asked, obviously not thrilled with the idea.

Casey smiled sheepishly. "See, right now, you probably don't have the best impression of me, but I swear future you actually loves me like a daughter."

"Yeah, we'll see about that."

Realizing she wasn't getting anywhere with Piper, Casey took a deep breath, gathering her courage. She bounced on her heels a minute, her eyes closed. When she opened them she said, "Okay, I can do this. It's only a few hundred feet in the air. I'll be fine. _Es bueno_. Chris would never let me fall. I don't think. . ." She gestured vaguely at Lucky, "Orb me quick before I change my mind."

Lucky waved a hand at her, and she instantly went up into a swirl of deep blue lights. He then turned to Piper, and let out a big sigh, his hands folding over his chest. "My parents are so crazy."

000

Chris felt like he was losing his mind. The girl he'd grown up with was dead. It was fact. He knew it was fact because he would never forget how it felt as Casey had bled to death in his arms while he screamed for his father, Paige, Wyatt and pretty much every whitelighter and Elder whose name he could think to call. How he'd begged and pleaded for his own latent healing ability to kick-in, just this once, so he could save her, but it hadn't. He remembered how when both hers and his mother's bodies were long cold, he'd still screamed until he lost his voice.

The warlock was collecting powers. He'd already stolen telekinesis from some nameless witch. Next, he wanted the ability to freeze time. His mother had been more than he'd bargained for, putting up one hell of a fight despite being all alone. In the end, he'd used telekinesis to hurl her through the banister from the top landing. She'd broken her neck and died instantly, and with her, her power died too, enraging the warlock.

Chris had asked Casey on a date – their first official date, and they'd planned on going to a movie that night using the birthday money he'd gotten from his Aunt Paige, but he'd forgotten his wallet on the kitchen table that morning. He was just going to orb home and grab it, but Casey said she wanted to come with. He'd brought the warlock exactly what he was after – a time stopping witch.

As soon as the orbs solidified in the entryway, Chris spotted his mother's body and rushed to her side. As the horrifying realization hit him that his beloved mother was already cold with death, he had allowed himself to fall apart, tears pouring down his face as he tried to heal her, despite knowing she was already gone, despite the fact he'd never had the ability. In his total grief, he hadn't realized he'd left Casey unprotected until he heard her scream. The warlock had blinked in behind her and used an enchanted athame to stab her in the back, stealing her power in the process. Not that he ever got to use it. Chris made certain of that. Chris wasn't the strongest witch, but enraged, he was still lethal.

Sitting on the support beam of the Golden Gate Bridge, Chris stared down at the traffic below, trying to get a grip on his whirling emotions. He welcomed the cold slap of the wind on his face. It grounded him, and he desperately needed it.

Every woman in his life he'd ever cared about had died. His aunts, his mother, Casey and even Bianca were all dead. He closed his eyes as he pictured Bianca. She was the last one he'd failed. The similarities were uncanny really. His first love and his last both tan, dark haired, and with big, soulful brown eyes. . .both bleeding to death in his arms because of his weakness. Only now one of them was seemingly alive and the mother of his son. It didn't make sense.

Orb lights drew Chris from his dark thoughts. The lights formed a few feet away from him on the cross beam, and as soon as Casey materialized she looked like she was going to be sick. Her face drained of all color and she started hyperventilating. He watched as she looked down at the traffic below and saw the flash of panic in her face right before she dropped to her hands and knees, clinging to the beam and shrieking, " _Jodeeeeerrrr!_ "

Chris's brows shot up, not used to hearing that voice use such a harsh curse. In fact, he didn't remember Casey ever cursing before. Then again, she was only thirteen when she'd died in his time.

" _Ay dios mio_ ," she cried as she half-opened one eye only to immediately squeeze it shut again. "Why? Why did it have to be the bridge?"

Despite her obvious blinding fear, Chris didn't immediately move from his spot. He stared down at her, keeping his face devoid of emotion. Part of him truly believed this whole thing had been a trick from Wyatt. It wouldn't be the first time his demented sibling had played mind games. After all, it's why he'd assigned Bianca to Chris in the first place. She looked like Casey enough to get under Chris' skin. So what if Wyatt had created this whole scenario? A cute kid and his long lost first love back from the grave telling tales about how he'd already saved the future, and it was okay, he could come back home now. God, had he really been such a sucker as to believe he had a son? That he would ever get to have a happy family? It would be nothing for Wyatt to have conjured the child, and this imposter could be any number of Wyatt's minions – a shapeshifter or witch under a glamour. It would be so like Wyatt to do this. Chris had betrayed him, so death wasn't punishment enough. He had to break his spirit first.

Chris kept his tone neutral as he questioned, "How did you get here?"

"There's this nifty thing called orbing you might be familiar with," she sarcastically retorted.

He leveled a dark look her way. "Don't be cute." He was a little surprised to see a flash of hurt in the imposter's face. He still didn't relent. "How did you get here? Who sent you?"

"Sent me?" she repeated. Finally, she answered, "Well, Lucky orbed me here if that's what you mean."

Chris finally rose to his full height and slid from the beam to stalk slowly toward her. He squatted in front of her, his green eyes flashing dangerously. He plucked one of her hands from the support beam and held her wrist tightly, ignoring the terrified look in her soft brown eyes as she realized he had pulled her off balance. With one gesture, he could easily toss her from the beam. He stared coldly into her face. "Don't play with me. Tell me what the hell Wyatt is after this time. Answer fast, or you're going to get a firsthand look at San Francisco traffic during morning rush hour."

"Chris?" her voice came out tiny. "Please, let me go. You don't want to do this."

Her big brown eyes were wide with panic and confusion. He almost cracked seeing the familiar face look so stricken. Almost. He shifted her backward, and half her weight was teetering off the edge of the beam. "Last chance."

Tears in her eyes, the woman cried out incoherently, "Alternate timeline! P-p-please, God, d-don't d-do this!"

He frowned down at her but pulled her forward slightly, so she was firmly on the beam. "What did you just say?"

The Casey look-alike was clinging so tightly to the beam now her hands were white with the effort. She was gasping in panic, tears pouring down her face. She was shaking, and her words came out in a rush as she explained, "Lucky and I are from an alternate timeline you created by coming here and saving Wyatt."

Chris' mouth parted slightly as he took in her words. Then, his eyes narrowed again. "Alternate timeline? You really expect me to believe that? How stupid does Wyatt think I am?"

"Wyatt?" she repeated, looking lost. After a moment, she seemed to realize something. "You think this is a trick?"

"Wyatt really is an arrogant son of a bitch," Chris replied. "You know, he almost had me with the kid. He really did, but he just always has to take it one step too far. He over-played his hand this time. Using my dead friend to screw with my head was a mistake."

"Dead?" She blinked dumbly. "I'm dead?"

"You're not Casey," he repeated, though with less heat. Those big brown eyes were getting to him. They looked so much like _hers_. He was going to kill Wyatt for this.

"I am," she argued, her voice raw. "I am her. Just look at me, Chris. Really look. You damn near hurled me off a bridge, but I still love you – also seriously pissed at you, but I love you. You have to be able to see that. Evil can't love. They can't even pretend very well. This isn't a trick."

Chris forced himself to study her gaze, and under the fear there was affection. Love shone deeper than he ever remembered seeing in his friend's eyes before. He shook his head, trying to clear it. He'd been fooled before. He could only think of one way to find out for sure if she really was from an alternate timeline. "What happened the week I turned fourteen?"

The woman frowned trying to remember. "When you turned fourteen?" A minute passed before something seemed to come to her. "I remember now. There was an attack. Everything had been so quiet on the demon front when we were growing up no one saw it coming. Paige was attacked by a darklighter, and some warlock was after your mom. You, me and Wyatt were about to get tickets for the third Griffen Blood movie when he cried out in pain. He was making such a scene I had to freeze the theatre. Turned out he was feeling Paige's pain and hearing your mom calling for help. Since he knew Paige was hurt, he went to help her and told us to get to your mom. We got there just as your mom came flying over the banister. You were able to orb her to the couch before she hit the ground. Then just as the darklighter popped in behind me, Piper was able to get a clear shot and blew him up. We were really freaked out though because if we had been just a few seconds later . . . I don't' even want to think about how differently it could've turned out."

Chris closed his eyes, moisture licking his lashes. His voice was barely a whisper, "I was too late. She broke her neck."

"No," his companion breathed, horrified. "Piper died in your timeline?" Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him against her. "I'm so sorry, Chris. Oh God, I'm sorry. I know how much you love Piper. Seeing your parent like that . . . it's awful."

The witchlighter felt one of her hands gently stroke his hair while the other wrapped under his arm pulling them together. The embrace felt incredibly natural, and he found himself succumbing to it despite his previous mistrust. Then, when the breeze went through her hair, he was overcome by the smell of mango. He couldn't help himself from closing his eyes and just breathing it in. It was amazing how many feelings and memories a scent could evoke. His entire childhood unleashed by something as simple as hair conditioner. In this moment, everything about her was so painfully familiar, and his heart skipped a beat, fully recognizing what his brain had refused to believe. Somehow, someway . . . the woman sitting before him was Casey.

"I'm so sorry," he offered, returning her embrace. "Wyatt has done this sort of thing before, so I thought. . .I'm so sorry."

Casey pulled back to look at him, smiling softly at his guilt ridden expression. "I'll forgive you on one condition."

"Name it."

"Get me the hell off this bridge."

Chris kept his hands on her arms and orbed them out immediately, but he wasn't ready to go back to the manor yet. He had far too many questions for Casey, and he couldn't risk any of the sisters overhearing information about the future. Not to mention how confusing it might be for Lucky if he heard it. So, Chris picked the one other place he could think of to go.

As they rematerialized in the back room of P3, he noticed the surprised look on his companion's face as she took in their surroundings. She suddenly shot him a grin. "P3? Feel the need to drink, do we?"

"Uh, no," he answered, though a small grin pulled at the corner of his mouth. "I'm actually sort of staying here." He gestured to the cot as evidence.

"Piper's okay with her precious baby boy sleeping in the backroom of her club?"

He shrugged. "Didn't know who I was until a while ago. Now, everyone's just used to it."

"I see."

Chris took a deep breath and gestured for her to take a seat. When she'd hopped up on the edge of the desk, he moved to sit on the cot. He shook his head as he took in the sight of her with new eyes. Now he'd determined she wasn't some horrible apparition sent by Wyatt to torture him, but truly his friend alive and well and all grown up, he couldn't help but realize how grown up she looked.

Casey had always been a pretty girl, and he'd often wondered what she would've looked like had she been given the chance to grow up. Now, he knew. She still had the same long mahogany hair, but instead of being in a messy ponytail or left in wild, untamed waves, it was styled into soft curls. Her features were still quite delicate but more mature. He was pretty certain she hadn't grown even an inch, which was somewhat amusing, yet she was definitely not a little girl anymore. Her figure was all sensual curves, and he couldn't help but notice it. His tomboy best friend had grown up to be absolutely stunning.

It was only when he truly studied her gaze that he found something concerning. Her coffee brown eyes, while still soft and loving didn't have the spunk he'd always attributed to the girl he'd known. They seemed hardened and a little haunted like she'd been through too much and seen terrible things. They were the eyes of someone who had been broken at one point. He could recognize it easily as the same look staring back at him from every mirror.

"Chris, uh, you're kind of staring."

Chris ran a hand through his hair, letting out a breath. "Sorry, it's just so surreal."

"It's okay. I get it," she said lightly swinging her feet from her perch on the desk. "You look like my Chris, but you are definitely not my Chris. Almost like he had a twin brother I didn't know about."

"An evil twin?" Chris asked, ashamed.

To his surprise, Casey answered, "No. Paranoid and scary intense, maybe." She leaned back on her hands, tilting her head as she regarded him with a studious eye. "I get it, though. The world you come from has got to be pretty terrifying. I can't even imagine the kind of things an evil Wyatt would be capable of doing. You've probably had to harden yourself just to survive, so it makes sense you're not like my Chris."

"What's your world like?" Chris couldn't help but wonder. "I mean, you said you're from the future I make by being here, right? So . . . Wyatt's always been good?"

Casey made sure to look him directly in the eye as she promised, "I swear to you, Chris, you really do save Wyatt. In my time, he has always been a great guy. He's kind and thoughtful and sometimes, he can actually be such a dork. It's his way of coping. He's never liked the idea of being all powerful, so he compensates with eternal optimism and lame jokes."

Chris smiled at the idea of his brother becoming the person Casey was describing. While he couldn't reconcile the two versions of his brother in his mind, it gave him incredible hope.

"He loves you very much," Casey continued, noticing the softer look on her companion's face. "You two are more than brothers. You've been best friends for as long as I've known the two of you, which is pretty much forever."

"We were always close," Chris said, drifting back to his own memories. "That wasn't the problem. Just, he always seemed so guarded. I know he went to the Underworld a lot, even when we were pretty young. I think he was hunting demons as a way to feel powerful. That was his obsession – being the most powerful. He thought it meant he could control everything and none of us would get hurt."

"Like his protective nature got twisted?" Casey asked.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, and it only got worse when Mom died. My grandpa moved into the manor and was technically our legal guardian, but he got sick a little over a year later and died. Wyatt took care of me, and I'm pretty sure he was using magic to do it. Conjuring money and anything else we might need. I wasn't thinking very clearly at that point, so I didn't stop to ask where it was all coming from, or why the social workers only came once."

"Social workers?"

"I was only fifteen, and Wyatt just seventeen. They were going to put me in foster care, but suddenly everything just worked out, and no one ever checked on us again." Chris pursed his lips, clearly troubled by the next part. "I think he threatened them, or used magic to coerce them. There's one that went missing though, and I always wondered if maybe. . ."

Casey's mouth fell open. "Wyatt killed them?"

Instead of answering, Chris just smiled softly. "I'm glad you find the idea of Wyatt doing that completely unbelievable."

"More than," she confirmed. "The Wyatt I know has a hard time swatting flies. He feels bad and says they don't know they aren't supposed to be inside."

Chris' eyebrows shot up. "Yeah, that's going to take some getting used to." A thought suddenly struck him. "If Wyatt is that different, then what am I going to be like? I mean, I have no idea what's going to happen when I walk back into the future. I could cease to exist or merge with your Chris. None of my research really told me for sure."

"Well, Chris . . .You? He?"

"Let's call other me he or him just to keep it less confusing," Chris suggested.

Casey nodded. "Okay, well, he is a great guy too, so you don't have to be scared about that."

Chris leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees. "So, what's he like? What's his life like?"

"Well, he's fiercely protective of the people he loves," Casey started, "and very loyal. He is a bit cocky and impulsive which has been known to get him into trouble. He can also be infuriatingly stubborn. Uh, let's see, we run a catering company together."

"That's what Lucky was talking about," Chris realized. "So, other me can cook? Like really cook?"

"You can't?"

"Does nuking things count?"

The young woman pulled a face. "No. No it does not." She frowned, obviously trying to piece something together. "Why didn't Piper teach you? You and I were under her feet constantly when she was in the kitchen, and when we were older we worked in her restaurant."

Chris broke out into a wide smile. "She got her restaurant?"

"Yeah, she opened it when we were kids. She didn't before?"

Chris shook his head. "No, I guess she always had too much going on. That's probably why she didn't have time to teach us how to cook in my timeline either. I'm guessing your Wyatt didn't get into much trouble when we were growing up, huh?"

"No, that was mostly you," Casey teased. She shrugged admitting, "I may have helped."

The witchlighter's face suddenly fell as he realized something. "Lucky. "

"Yeah, I definitely helped with that one."

Chris wasn't really listening at that point. "Lucky said his Dad went missing, and you told me you were from an alternate timeline, and you're my age . . . it's an alternate but _parallel_ timeline. No, no, no. You have _got_ to be kidding me. I succeed in saving the whole freaking future only to wind up turning myself into a teenage parent?" He shook his head, floored by the realization. "This is _un_ believable."

"Well, I can safely say my Chris is better at math than you are if you're just figuring that out now."

Chris shot her a look. "You're hilarious, you know? For your information, I was working under the assumption he was from further in the timeline than I was. I mean never in my wildest imagination would I have ever even considered the idea I was a father at seventeen. Seventeen, Casey? What were you thinking?"

The latina's eyebrows shot up. "Excuse me I wasn't the only one on that bar top that night."

"Bar top?"

She blushed fiercely but leaned over on the desk to point out the door toward the bar at P3. "Yeah, over there to be precise."

Chris' mouth fell open, his eyes wide. "We conceived Lucky on my mother's bar?"

"Technically," Casey drew out, uncomfortable, "yes."

"Oh my god," Chris dropped his head into his hands, horrified. He shot a look at her. "Firstly, have you no self-control? Secondly, do they not have condoms in your timeline?"

The woman wrinkled her nose at him, narrowing her eyes. "You're kind of judgy for a guy who tried to toss the mother of your child off a bridge not ten minutes ago."

He had the decency to look ashamed. "Sorry. Lucky seems like a really great kid and all, but I don't understand how we could've been so reckless."

"Well," Casey said taking a breath, "we were both in really bad places that night. I was a complete mess after _Papi_ was killed and you-"

"-Lorenzo is dead?" Chris cut-in too shocked to filter himself.

The young woman's face fell, her skin growing pale. "He's not in your world?"

"No, though he often wishes he were," Chris answered softly. "He was never the same after you died."

Casey was fighting tears. "I can't believe he's alive in your time."

Seeing her pain, something she'd said on the bridge registered in Chris' mind. "You knew how awful it was for me to lose Mom because in your timeline you lost your father. You were talking from firsthand experience back there."

Casey nodded. "One of the worst moments of my life was identifying my father's body. A demon had ripped him apart – literally. I used to have these horrible nightmares. I still get them sometimes."

"I have them about the day you and Mom died."

Casey let out a big breath, taking in the information. "I died in the same attack. I guess that makes sense. If your mom died, she wouldn't have blasted the warlock, and I would've been stabbed. I would've died at thirteen. Wow . . . that sucks."

"I am so sorry," Chris told her, his voice cracking. "It was my fault. I brought you right to him, and then I left you standing there all alone, and he. . ."

Casey shook her head. "Chris, no. Firstly, we had no idea he was after my power. Secondly, you had just found out your mother was dead. Of course you weren't going to be thinking about the warlock or me or anything else."

His head remained hanging low, so she slipped from the desk to stand in front him, lifting his face with her hands, locking her brown eyes on his green. "Listen to me," she softly ordered, "since your Casey didn't get the chance to tell you this, I'm going to do it for her: My death was not your fault. Okay?"

Chris let the words wash over him, feeling a weight he'd been carrying for years suddenly lift. He let out a deep, shaky breath before nodding. "Okay."

"Besides," Casey said, "I'm apparently destined to die young in any timeline, so there's that."

"What?"

"Yeah, our darling son has your knack for time travel apparently, and he popped in from the future a few years ago. He let it slip I wasn't alive in his time, so by my estimate I have at most about ten good years left." She gave a little twisted smile, "I really should max out my life insurance, huh?"

Chris' tone was low as he commented, "That's not funny. Don't make jokes about it."

Casey sighed, pushing her hair back behind her ears. "Sorry. Bad habit. My sense of humor got a bit morbid after _Papi_ died."

Chris realized then why her eyes looked so haunted. Her father's death had left her broken, and he imagined becoming a teenager mother had changed her too. She'd been through a lot. It was no wonder the fire had dimmed somewhat in her gaze. A knot twisted his stomach as a dark thought came to his mind. "Please, tell me he didn't use your father's death to sleep with you."

"It was complicated." She hugged herself, and he was struck by how very young she looked. Her eyes were focused on the floor and shame colored her cheeks. "He was in love with someone else, but she wasn't in the picture at that point, and we were both hurting so much, and we'd been drinking and . . . it just happened."

"Let me get this straight," Chris said, holding up his hands. "Not only am I reckless and irresponsible in your timeline, I'm also a cheater?"

"In your defense, she was sort of dead at the time," Casey offered. When he just folded his arms over his chest and frowned at her, she explained, "Molly was a future whitelighter, and when she died you were completely devastated. It's the only reason you did what you did with me – you were hurting just as much as I was."

Chris asked in complete disbelief and a little disgust, "I dated a whitelighter named Molly?"

It was the woman's turn to frown. "You don't know Molly?"

He shook his head. "No. Never heard of her, but then again, I'm not a fan of whitelighters either."

"Well, that's going to be awkward when we get home," Casey mumbled.

Chris leaned back on the cot, her words triggering a question. "Speaking of home, how did you get here in the first place? Lucky is a Halliwell, and our family line only gets stronger with each generation, so it made sense for him to be able to cast the spell, but no offense, Casey, I know my version of you didn't have anywhere near the power to travel through time, needless to say this far back."

"Please, don't freak out, but Wyatt sent me," she answered, looking nervous.

Chris rolled his eyes. "I'm not going to freak out. Now that I understand you're from a different timeline, it makes sense Wyatt would want to help save his nephew. Actually, that's really good news because he has the power to create a spell going both ways, so we can get you guys home." Off her sheepish look. "What aren't you telling me?"

"I sort of didn't let him," Casey replied.

"What?" Chris cried. "You trapped yourself here? Why? Why would you do that?"

"A demon had tricked my son into walking into a time portal, Chris," she said arms folded and eyes flashing. "I had no idea where he was going or if he was okay. I was a mess. All I could think about was getting to him as quickly as possible, and my own personal safety really wasn't much of a priority compared to getting to Lucky." She gave his chest a hard poke with her finger, "So back off."

Chris raised his eyebrows and lifted his hands in surrender. "Okay, has anyone ever told you you're a little scary in momma bear mode? "

"Just imagine what I put poor Wyatt through. He was the first on the scene."

"Which explains why he caved," Chris deduced. He frowned, "Any idea why the demon wanted Lucky in the past?"

"Wyatt and I think he was trying to change the past again. Distract you so you wouldn't have time to figure out who turned Wyatt, and then evil would have their future back."

Chris nodded. "Good theory. Speaking of which, you don't happen to know who turned Wyatt, do you?"

Casey shook her head. "Sorry. No. No one told me."

"So I've still got nothing." He put his forehead in one hand. "Great."

Casey sat next to him on the cot, instinctively wrapping her arms around him and putting her head on his shoulder. "It's going to be okay. Lucky and I are proof of that. You just keep doing what you're doing, and I'll make sure Lucky doesn't get in the way of your research or demon hunting or anything else you might need to do."

Chris smiled down at her enjoying the feel of her against him more than he'd admit. "He needs his Dad though. Based on what the Angel of Destiny warned me about before I came here, I'm guessing when your Chris vanished he essentially merged with me somehow, so I am still his Dad, sorta. I don't want him to ever feel like his father doesn't care about him, so I can play the part for now. We'll just need to tag team it, so I can still find the threat against Wyatt."

Casey lifted her head from his shoulder and smiled. "You may not remember this, but you and I are an excellent team. This is completely doable."

When she put her head back on his shoulder, he wrapped his arm around her and silently prayed she was right. Because at the moment, he wasn't worried about how much of a distraction Lucky would be. He was concerned by the way Casey was making him feel right now – vulnerable, hopeful and definitely distracted.

TBC . . .

Next time: I play with Spin City because clearly Leo needs to meet his adorable grandson :)


	8. Cat's in the Cradle

AN: Many lines are taken from Spin City, and obviously aren't mine. I have changed a few things to fit my purposes.

Thanks so much to my two reviewers! You guys never fail to inspire me to keep getting these chapters done :)

Anthony: So glad you like their connection. I hope to build on that in future chapters.

Callisto Nicol: Hope I do Spin City justice for you since I know you love it- I couldn't leave much out, so I'm going to break it into two chapters. *Fingers crossed*

Chapter 8

Chris was emotionally exhausted. Yesterday, he and Casey had spent hours telling each other about their own timelines in an effort to reconnect as friends as well as to understand what they were up against, and what was at risk if they failed.

First and foremost, Chris had insisted she tell him as much as she possibly could about Lucky, so he could try to be an adequate substitute until the other Chris' memories resurfaced – if they ever did. Neither of them were sure what would happen when they returned to the future. In any case, Chris wanted to be prepared. He made sure to make mental notes about how Lucky's favorite color was blue, he was afraid of snakes and the dark, he was currently completely obsessed with motorcycles, was allergic to shellfish and apparently had a destiny as the reincarnation of Sir Galahad. The last part had taken a bit for Chris to swallow. Apparently, the little boy was powerful enough to give Wyatt a run for his money.

Chris had also learned he was apparently engaged to that whitelighter, Molly. He couldn't say he was thrilled with the idea. Firstly, he had never even met her. Secondly, the first adjective Casey used to describe her was 'sweet'. Sweet and innocent had never really been Chris' type. Lastly, she wasn't Bianca.

When Chris had tried to subtly ask Casey about the fiancée he actually remembered, it was fairly clear she had no idea who he was talking about. It seemed his other version had never crossed paths with the Phoenix witch. He'd feared this could happen. After all, he and Bianca had only met because Wyatt had hired her to try to turn him evil. Wyatt was good in Casey's timeline, so he obviously wouldn't have hired an assassin for any reason. Chris had hoped their destinies were connected in any timeline, but it seemed that wasn't so. He hadn't been able to hide the heartbreak from his friend, and she'd realized fairly quickly how important Bianca was to him. Despite not intending to, he'd ended up telling her everything. Finding out her best friend was engaged to an assassin had definitely shocked her, but he was pleased to discover she was open-minded about it.

Chris had then wondered why, if Bianca wasn't around in the new timeline, he and Casey hadn't gotten together. They'd just started dating when she'd died in his timeline. They had a child together in the changed future. It was obvious they held a deep connection and mutual attraction, so why weren't they together? Why hadn't the other Chris ditched that Molly girl once he'd found out Casey was pregnant? If it had been him, he would have made every effort to do by right by Casey. He'd actually been stunned when she'd explained not only were they not married, but they weren't even together. He didn't get it. Oddly enough, every time he'd tried to broach the topic to find out why, his friend grew fidgety and changed the subject. It made his stomach twist and knot. He wasn't stupid. Obviously something ugly had transpired between them, and she didn't want to tell him.

After learning more about Wyatt and the changed future, Chris felt both elated and completely terrified of messing it up. Suddenly, it wasn't just the weight of his own world on his shoulders, but also the fate of an entirely different future too. Feeling incredibly anxious, he'd ended their conversation by explaining he really had a lot of work to do and should get back to checking out his leads. After orbing Casey back to the manor, he'd headed down to the underworld and spent most of the day checking in with his demonic contacts.

Chris had lost track of time down there, and he'd missed dinner. By the time he checked in at the manor, Lucky was already asleep. He felt terrible. He'd intended to at least say goodnight to the kid. Casey had passed out on the sofa in the living room, so he didn't even get to find out how the day had gone. He covered her with a blanket before orbing back to P3 to get a little sleep himself.

That's why this morning he made sure to get over to the manor first thing, or at least he thought it was first thing. Seemed Casey and Lucky had been up for quite a while by the time he orbed into the kitchen. The tiny woman had already whipped up something for breakfast, which Lucky was in the middle of eating when Chris arrived.

Upon seeing his Dad, Lucky dropped his fork and jumped up from his chair to run into Chris' legs, giving him a tight hug. Starting to get used to the affection, Chris moved to hug him back before fondly ruffling the boy's hair. "Sorry I missed you yesterday. Did you have a good day?"

"It was okay," Lucky said with a little shrug. "It was kinda funny seeing Grams yell at Mom."

Chris turned to Casey for an explanation.

The latina was fixing up another plate of something and rolled her eyes. "Love you too, _Lucerito_." When she noticed Chris giving her a look she explained, "I defiled her son. She hates me." She held out the plate to him. "Hungry?"

"Grams is mad at you too," Lucky whispered to him, conspiratorially. "I didn't mean to tell her you said bad words, honest."

Chris swallowed thickly realizing his mother knew he was going to make her a very young grandmother. He was so incredibly screwed. Trying to make Lucky feel better he explained, "I don't think that's why she's mad, Buddy, so don't worry about it."

"Can we go to the park today?" Lucky asked, dragging him over to the table to sit next to him. "You, me and Momma could all go together, and it would be so much fun. Can we, can we, can we?"

Chris opened his mouth, dreading disappointing his son, but he was saved by Casey who responded, "Lucky, you have to go to Magic School today. I don't want you to fall behind in your studies. Even if they aren't the same teachers you're used to it's better than just sitting around here all day."

"Says you," Lucky muttered.

"Hey," Chris chided, "you don't talk to your mother that way. Hear me?"

Lucky ducked his head. " _Siento_."

Chris looked down at his plate and had no idea what he was being fed. It looked like some sort of egg with ham and an English muffin but there was a strange light yellow sauce on it. He lightly poked the egg and watched as a pool of yolk flooded out.

"It looks weird, but it's really yummy," Lucky whispered. "Just try it, Dad."

Trusting that if a five year old was willing to eat it it couldn't taste that bad, Chris cut off a bite and with a little shrug put it in his mouth. It was amazing. The egg yolk and the yellow sauce were rich and creamy and soaked into the bread, and the ham was fried and a bit smoky in contrast. He'd never had anything like this before, and he couldn't help but let out a little moan of appreciation.

Lucky grinned. "Told ya."

Casey, who was sipping coffee over by the island, had a big smile on her face. "I take it eggs benedict isn't real common in your future?"

He shook his head, already working on devouring the rest. Truth be told, fresh food wasn't common for people not in Wyatt's immediate employ, and even when Chris had been undercover and living in Wyatt's residence, the Twice Blessed had always had fairly simple taste. It was usually meat and potatoes or some sort of pasta. He'd hated eggs, so breakfast was normally pancakes or French toast.

"Need coffee," Paige's voice floated into the kitchen a moment before her body appeared. She was still dressed in her pajamas, her hair mussed and a sleepy look on her face. She moved for the coffee maker without actually taking in the fact a strange woman was in the kitchen. Once she'd poured a cup and taken a sip, she finally turned around and spotted the new comer. With a startled yip, she accidentally orbed in place. When she reformed, her hand was over her heart and she frowned over at Chris, "Who is this?"

"That's just Momma, Auntie Paige," Lucky replied. To his father, "She's so hopeless in the morning."

Chris just nodded agreement, a grin forming at the accurate assessment from the five year old.

Paige gave Casey a once over before finally turning back to Chris, an eyebrow arched and a little smirk on her lips as she commented approvingly, "You sly dog."

Chris dropped his head into one hand, mortified.

"I'm Paige," the youngest Charmed One offered the young woman a hand. She scrunched up her face. "You probably already know that, huh?"

Casey chuckled. "Yeah, but that's okay. I'm Casey."

"You don't look like you're older than Chris here, so, I assume my nephew apparently makes Piper a grandmother pretty young." She smiled wickedly, "She's gotta love that."

Phoebe appeared like a whirlwind a moment later, rushing for the coffee while bemoaning how late she was, and how Elise was going to kill her, and she had such a busy day planned what with needing to find the father of her future child on top of keeping her job. As she poured her coffee into a travel mug, she had just started going on about how she really had a good feeling about her date, Mitch, when she noticed the other woman in the room with Paige wasn't Piper. She put on a wide plastic smile, asking Paige between her teeth, "Uh, who's this?"

"The girl Chris knocked up in the future," Paige said, a little too gleefully.

Phoebe turned to find Chris shooting daggers at her baby sister. "Is that true? Is this Lucky's mom?

"What's knocked up mean?" Lucky asked.

"Thanks a lot, Paige," Chris snapped.

Casey answered Lucky that she'd tell him later, which earned her a pout.

Chris let out a frustrated breath before answering Phoebe. "Yes, this is Casey. She and Lucky are from an alternate timeline."

"Alternate timeline," Phoebe repeated her eyebrows going up. "I see. Well, okay then." She turned to Casey smiling and giving the girl a quick hug followed by a pat on the shoulder. "Welcome to the family."

Casey started to explain she and Chris weren't married, but the middle Charmed One was already on the move again grabbing her purse and making a mad dash for the door. "Busy day. Got to go. See everyone later. Bye!"

"People in the past are crazy," Lucky commented shaking his head.

"You're telling me," Chris agreed giving his remaining Aunt a pointed look.

Paige stuck her tongue out at him in response.

Casey watched the whole scene with a mix of shock and amusement. While certain aspects of the exchange were similar to what she'd grown up with there were definite changes too. The strangest part was seeing the sisters so immature compared to the strong, powerful, confident women she'd grown up idolizing. Wyatt had told her about it when he'd returned from being pulled to the past, but seeing it firsthand was still surreal. It was also clear their relationship with Chris was very complicated. Phoebe seemed outright ambivalent toward him, clearly too worried about her personal life. Paige loved him, but it was almost a brotherly fondness. She supposed it was because they were so close in age at the moment.

"You're still taking Mom to her appointment later, right?" Chris asked Paige.

"Yup," she replied, "After all, I have to make sure my new baby nephew is healthy."

He rolled his eyes but couldn't help but smile.

Casey finished her coffee, rinsed the mug and put it in the sink. She then turned, hands on hips to Lucky. "You ready to go, _Lucerito_?"

"Yeah, I guess," the boy mumbled before sliding down from his chair. He tossed a disappointed look to Chris. "Bye, Dad. I guess I gotta go to stupid Magic School now."

"Maybe you'll have fun?" Chris offered.

The boy leveled a look at him that could have come straight from a mirror.

Paige noticed and commented, "Oooh, guess I know what Chris looks like in about five years, huh?"

"Can you at least try to have a good time?" Chris asked his son.

"I wanna hang out with you," Lucky whined.

Casey put her hands on her son's shoulders, giving him an affectionate squeeze. "Your Dad has a lot of work to do, Lucas. Remember, he's on a very important mission right now, so he's not going to be free to hang out with us whenever we want. We need to be patient and understanding, okay? What he's doing is bigger than us."

The words served like a slap in the face to Chris. He was immediately drawn into all the memories he had of Piper telling him the exact same thing growing up. How Leo wanted to be at his birthday party, but being an Elder was hard since his time wasn't his own. He was serving the greater good, so they couldn't be selfish. His mother had made excuse after excuse for his father's absence, and when he'd been little, like Lucky, he'd tried so hard to do as she asked and cut his dad slack, but the older he got the more he realized Leo was making a choice not to be with his family. Not to be there for Chris. When his best friend was dying in his arms, his mother's corpse a few feet away, Chris had screamed for his father, but he'd never really expected the man to come. He hated Leo, and Chris never wanted Lucky to feel that way about him.

"Bye, Dad," Lucky said, trying to put on a brave face and not quite pulling it off. He took his mother's hand, and Casey shot her friend a small smile of reassurance before she and Lucky disappeared in a tornado of orb lights.

Suddenly no longer hungry, Chris pushed his plate away. Giving Paige some excuse about checking a lead, he orbed away.

000

After spending most of the day seeking out seers and oracles trying to determine if anything he'd already done was making any headway in creating Casey and Lucky's future, Chris was now sitting in the dark at P3, his tarot cards spread out in front of him on the bar. His Aunt Phoebe had taught him everything she knew about Tarot, and while he wasn't technically a psychic, he'd always been pretty good with the cards. He moved a few cards out of the way with his finger before he felt a pull toward one. He flipped it over and sighed. Judgement. Of course.

The Judgement card in an upright position is suggestive of a recent epiphany or an awakening, if you will. It was pulled by those experiencing a calling of some kind in their life, and often it meant the person needed to open themselves up to new possibilities in order to put the past behind them and confront unfinished business.

Chris felt like the card was mocking him. An awakening? Did finding out he had a son in a changed future where his brother isn't evil and his mother isn't dead count? Oh, and a calling? Wouldn't have anything to do with his mission to save the future, right? New possibilities had him stumped. What exactly was he supposed to be opening himself up to?

The light coming on pulled him from his thoughts, and he turned to find one of Piper's managers coming down the stairs. It was pretty early for anyone to be here. The bar wouldn't even be opening for another four hours. He couldn't help but ask, "Dennis, what are you doing here?"

"I work here, remember?" the other man quipped.

Chris smiled at the comment before clarifying, "No, I know. I mean, what are you doing here so early?"

"Piper called. Wanted me to set up for the band."

The witchlighter frowned, confused. "Piper called? From where, the doctor's?"

Dennis shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe." A concerned look filled his face, "Is something wrong? Is she okay?"

"Yeah," Chris assured him, "It's just a regular check-up for the baby. I'm sure everything's fine."

Dennis rested the box he'd been carrying on one of the stools for a moment, a curious look on his face. After a moment, he hesitantly started, "You mind if I ask you a question?"

Not sure where he was going, Chris gave a little shrug. "Sure."

"You know Piper pretty well, don't you? I mean, you guys seem close."

Chris nodded, still not quite knowing what Dennis was getting at. "Yeah, real close."

"What's the deal with the ex of hers, Leo?" Dennis asked, clearly disgusted at the mere mention of Leo. "Dude gets her pregnant, right? Then what? Just skips town on her? I mean, what's up with that?"

Chris let out a breath, trying to stop himself from saying too much. After all, he had some pretty strong feelings about the situation himself. He settled for saying, "It's a long story."

Dennis shook his head. "As far as I'm concerned, she deserves a hell of a lot better."

"Couldn't agree with you more," Chris said, voice thick.

The witchlighter glanced down at the Tarot card he'd turned over earlier and felt angry all over again. He'd hated Leo for a long time. Partly because the man had repeatedly let him down over the course of his life, but also, Leo had hurt his mother. In the past, present and future, he'd broken his mom's heart. Left her to struggle raising two magical children all alone. As Dennis put it, he'd gotten her pregnant then left her.

Then a sharp pang of guilt struck him. He'd done the same thing to Casey. Or would do the same thing. He wasn't sure whether it was considered the past or future since it was an alternate timeline. Either way, another version of him had gotten his best friend in trouble and then tossed her to the curb as soon as his whitelighter girlfriend had returned. Sure, it seemed like his other version was a good father to Lucky, but Chris couldn't stop thinking about how Casey had avoided talking about their relationship yesterday. What exactly had happened between them? Had he hurt her as much as Leo had hurt Piper? Why wasn't he with the mother of his child?

Chris leaned back on the stool. He swore he would find out. Just not right now. Right now, he had to go support his mother. After all, it wasn't like Leo was going to do it.

000

"So, you excited?" Paige asked her big sister as the elevator doors of the hospital closed behind them.

"About what?"

"About what the doctor said," Paige replied, a bit excited herself. "That it's gonna be a healthy baby."

Piper gave a short laugh, shaking her head. "Well, I know he's healthy. I've seen him twenty-two and walking around."

"Well, you never know," Paige defended, "something could happen."

The eldest Charmed One waved her off. "Oh, don't be such a worry wart. Now you're starting to sound like . . ." she drifted off as she caught sight of the swirl of orb lights forming her youngest son.

"Hey," Chris greeted.

"Chris," Piper replied, smiling with a bit of fond frustration.

Paige narrowed her eyes at him. "Okay, if this is about demons, I don't wanna hear it because I am on my lunch break."

"No, no, no. I just wanted to know how it went with the doctor."

Piper suddenly smiled widely and held up the sonogram photo. "Well, you'll be happy to know you're a boy."

Chris folded his arms and shot her an annoyed look. "That's not what I meant."

Paige, peeking over at the image, scrunched up her face. "I don't see it."

Piper lowered it to show her a better angle and started pointing to something on the image. "Oh, see, it's this little thing right here."

"Whoa!" Mortified, Chris snatched the photo from his mother's hands. He was also a bit insulted by the whole 'little' comment she just had to put in there. He was sure she was just teasing him but still . . . He shot her a pointed look to show he was not amused. "Excuse me. Do you mind?"

Then curiosity got the better of him, and he looked down at the image and frowned. How could anyone tell what anything was on this thing? It was a bunch of black and white blobs. He then wondered vaguely if the technology improved by the time he and Casey would get one for Lucky. He shook his head at himself. Seemed all his thoughts today were going to be pulled back to those two.

He was still lost in thought about all the things he didn't remember or know about Casey's pregnancy when the elevator doors opened. He walked automatically out into the parking garage.

"Why are you so edgy anyway?" Piper asked, misinterpreting his somber mood. "Relax."

Deciding he didn't want to open up a can of worms with his mom, Chris just went with her assumption. "Well, it's not me in there I was thinking about. It's you. I'm just making sure you're okay."

Paige smirked. "See, that's when he asks for money to go to the movies."

"Very funny," Chris retorted dryly. "Actually, in the future, you're the one I go to for money."

His aunt narrowed her eyes at him. "Wait a minute, Mister. I thought I was dead in your future. Didn't you tell us the Titans killed me?"

Chris paused in his tracks, silently cursing his own slip. He'd gotten a bit too comfortable with his family in the past now they knew who he was. He shrunk a bit under the pair of questioning gazes. "Uh . . . I may have sort of . . . exaggerated what happened with the Titans a bit."

"Christopher Perry Halliwell," his mother snapped. "You lied about your aunt dying?"

The young man winced at the all too familiar tone. It'd been a long time since his mother had ripped into him with his full name, and he felt very much like a little kid again. He shrunk back a bit, offering in a rush, "Hey, I knew it was my best shot at getting you and Phoebe to trust me. Family comes first, so if you thought I saved Paige, I figured I had a better chance of gaining your trust."

Paige, brown eyes still glaring at him, curtly pointed out, "You know what else might have done the trick? Oh, gee, I don't know, maybe telling us who the heck you were from the get-go? Yup, that might've done it."

"I didn't exist yet," Chris countered. "I could've erased my own existence."

"Yeah, cause that didn't almost happen anyway or anything," Paige snipped back. "What were you thinking sending Leo away, anyway?"

"He wasn't much of a factor in my future."

"What does that mean?" Paige asked.

"I'd rather not talk about it."

Piper asked, "Future consequences?"

Chris sheepishly responded, "More like future issues."

"Ooh, father-son problems," Paige quipped.

Chris glared at her. "Here's an idea. Let's change the subject."

Just then a dark haired woman with pale white skin emphasized by her black dress dropped in front of Piper seemingly from the ceiling. She took a swipe at Piper, but Chris was faster, pulling his mother out of the way and safely to the ground, but in the process, the creature's sharp claws scraped painfully against his own neck. He could feel his skin throbbing as it grew warm and sticky with blood. He vaguely heard Paige call for a fire extinguisher before his mother took a shot at blowing the creature up. Both attacks missed as the woman turned into a spider and slipped away.

Chris moved to help his mom up, and for the first time he realized just how much more vulnerable she was in her current condition. When Paige asked them if they were okay, Chris' first thought was his unborn self. He turned to look at his mother, wondering worriedly, "I don't know. Am I?" Then the turning of his head brought the stinging reminder of his own injury, and he asked them both, "Am I?"

Piper was looking nervously at her stomach as she answered, "I don't know."

It was only when Piper caught sight of the bloody claw marks on her adult son's neck she seemed to snap out of her worried daze. She frowned, not liking the angry red welts already forming underneath the drying blood. "We need to get you home and cleaned up, Chris. That looks bad."

Paige took her sister's arm but waited for Chris to orb out first, wanting to make sure he was able to given his injury. When he disappeared in a column of lights she immediately followed him back to the manor. The three of them arrived in the kitchen a moment later.

Casey was sitting at the table flipping through the Book of Shadows, making notes about something. She glanced up at the sound orb lights and her face went pale as she saw Chris' neck. She was on her feet a minute later, running to the bathroom and coming back with the first aid kit, a wash cloth and a bowl of water. She gently took Chris' arm and pulled him onto a seat by the island.

"I'm fine," Chris told her as she shot him another worry filled look. Then he turned to his mother, "Right? I mean, mini-me in there?"

"Well, if he wasn't, I think you'd be the first to know," Piper responded, watching with a mother's eye how carefully Casey was tending to her son's injury. She couldn't deny the girl certainly cared for her son.

When Chris winced and pulled away from the cloth, Casey shot him an apologetic look. "Sorry. Just try to keep still."

Chris ignored her, still focusing on his mother. "Well, then why were you so worried back there?"

"I wasn't worried." Off his skeptical face, "All right, I was a little worried about the force field."

"What force field?" Casey and Chris both asked.

Paige smirked from over at the kitchen table. "Aw, see that's cute." When she only got dirty looks from both of them, she explained, "She's talking about the one she had when she was pregnant with Wyatt."

"You had a force field with Wyatt but not with me?" Chris asked, confused and a little hurt.

"Well, I didn't have one," Piper explained, "He had one. It was all his doing."

Chris' mouth fell open as he exclaimed, "From the womb? He had powers from the womb?" He threw his arms up in the air shaking his head. "That's unbelievable. It's not like I don't have an inferiority complex with him already. Thank you."

"Did you find that demon yet?" Piper shot to Paige.

"Yes, actually I did," Paige announced. "It's the Spider Demon. An evil creature that emerges from its hidden lair every hundred years to capture and feed off the most powerful magical creature it can detect." Looking at Piper, Paige concluded, "In this case that would be you."

"And me," Chris threw in. He shrugged, "Sorta."

Piper smirked at him. "You must be so proud."

"Do they not have therapists in your timeline?" Casey wondered with a teasing grin.

Chris hissed as she dabbed his neck with the cloth again. "Gentle please."

His friend rolled her eyes. "Oh, quit complaining. I'm almost done."

Piper let out a breath and started over to the phone. "Guess I should let the club know I'm going to be a little bit late."

"No," Chris argued, grabbing her arm to stop her from calling. "I thought we already discussed this. You're not going anywhere without a force field."

"Why because it's so much safer here?" Piper shot back. "I have to go work. I booked a band tonight."

"See, all done." Casey dropped the blood stained cloth back into the bowl of now pink water. Then she offered, "I can cover for you, Piper."

The eldest charmed One half-snorted, "You?"

"Oh come on, Piper," Casey rolled her eyes in frustration, "I've done it hundreds of times for Wyatt." Her eyes grew wide as she realized what she'd let slip. When she noticed Chris giving her a surprised look, her cheeks flushed.

Piper folded her arms over her chest quirking her brow. "Wyatt runs P3 in the future? And you help him?"

"Well, being Twice Blessed doesn't exactly pay the rent," Casey answered, "so while you still own the club he runs the day to day. I just help out when he gets busy with his other responsibilities." When Piper just kept staring at her she added, "I know you're not particularly fond of me, but I really am practically family in the future, and I can do this, so just let me help."

Piper sighed, gesturing vaguely. "Fine. You can help."

"Ok, well, Lucky should be home soon if you guys could let him know where I am and keep an eye on him?"

Paige nodded. "On it."

"Mind orbing me there?" Casey asked Chris. "Being as I don't have a license or a car in this time?"

"Sure."

Without thinking and out of pure habit, Casey gave him a peck on the cheek. "Thanks. Feel better."

Chris waved his hand, sending her flying off in a swirl of light. Then, he smiled thinking about how comfortable Casey was with him. In that moment she'd forgotten he wasn't her Chris, and she'd performed what was obviously a common ritual. It was nice.

"Well, at least there's a vanquishing potion here," Piper's voice pulled him from his thoughts. She was checking the book. "What do you say we make this eight-legged freak wish it'd never been hatched."

Chris peered over at the book to see the potion. "We need Phoebe."

Piper waved him off. "I don't want to interrupt her date with Mark."

"Actually, it's Mike this week," Paige corrected.

Chris rolled his eyes. "No, it's Mitch, but who cares? We need her."

Feeling weak, achy, and chilled, Chris asked, "So does that book say anything about that Spider being poisonous?"

Paige pulled a face. "Maybe we should call Leo?"

"No," Chris answered firmly.

"Why not?" Paige shot back. "He can help us. Besides, Piper's in danger, which means the baby's in danger, which means _you_ are in danger."

"Because we don't need him," Chris argued more harshly.

"Yeah, he's right," Piper agreed. "I don't want to open up that can of worms."

"He doesn't even know you're pregnant," Paige argued, clearly not pleased with that fact.

Chris didn't know if it was because he wasn't feeling well from the attack or if he'd just been through too much emotionally recently, but Paige's badgering about his dead-beat of a father had snapped the last of his patience. "He has been gone for six months," Chris answered, voice full of venom. "If he's not there for us in the future, why is he there for us now?"

A pained look flashed across Piper's face and she moved to take a seat at the table.

Paige shot a worried look to her big sister. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Piper forced a small smile. "I just need to sit down a minute."

Chris let out a breath, guilt filling him at having upset his mother. He stood from the chair and announced. "I'll go get Phoebe."

Disappearing in a swirl of orbs, Chris found himself at an outdoor café. His aunt Phoebe looked like she was trying to make a break for it from who he assumed was Mitch. The poor guy looked seriously confused, and Chris could only wonder what kind of crazy questions Phoebe had been asking him about their future to put that look on his face. Mitch's answers must have been lacking since Chris was pretty sure this was the first time Phoebe had ever smiled at seeing him orb in on her personal life.

Her smile melted as soon as she took in the sight of him shivering and sweating at the same time. "Chris, hey. Oh my god, you're sweating. What happened to your neck?"

He pulled away as she moved to touch his neck. "Piper was attacked by a demon. She's okay though. We need you back at the house to help with the vanquishing potion."

Chris vaguely heard Phoebe call goodbye using the wrong name for her hapless date. He felt terrible. His body felt like it was on fire, but he couldn't stop shaking. His head was killing him, and some stupid fly was buzzing loudly in his ear. Without thinking, he reached a hand up and snatched it from the air. He looked down at his hand in shock. Had he really just done that?

When Phoebe called for him, he numbly went to her and orbed them both back to the manor. No sooner had they arrived then Phoebe took off to check on the vanquishing potion Paige and Piper had already started working on.

Chris watched from the doorway for a while, but he felt tired and suddenly very worried. Something was definitely wrong with him, but he wasn't sure what. Orb lights drew his attention, and he smiled as they formed into Lucky. "Hey. How was school?"

He excitedly greeted, "Hi, Dad! It was okay. We-" He paused mid-sentence as he saw his father's condition. Lucky's face instantly fell. "You're hurt."

"Just a scratch," Chris told him. "I'll be fine."

Lucky stared at him for a moment and to Chris' complete shock, the child's eyes flashed golden for just a moment before returning to their normal sage green. "Your magic is wrong."

Before Chris could ask his son what just happened, or what he meant, Pheobe came bounding back into the living room exclaiming, "Okay, let's do this. I have a future to get back to."

"Who doesn't?" Chris retorted. When his aunt just handed him a potion vial in response, he questioned, "Did you bless this?"

"Yes, I blessed it, I sang to it," she quipped before noticing the glassy look in her nephew's eyes. "Are you okay?"

Chris sat on the stairs, resting his head on one hand. "Yeah, I think I'm just coming down with something."

"I think it's your magic," Lucky repeated.

Piper, who had come down from the stairs to sit next to Chris asked worriedly, "What do you mean? From the attack?"

Not realizing his grandmother wasn't talking to him, Lucky shrugged. "How should I know? I'm five."

Not hearing the little boy, Chris slid a grin to his mother. "Now who's the worry wart?" When she merely wrinkled her nose at him, he reminded her, "We still need Paige to bless this. Did you call her?"

"Yeah, she's on the way back from her temp job," Piper answered.

Phoebe then started complaining about getting a move on since she was running out of time to find the father of her future daughter. As she rambled on and on, Chris wasn't really paying attention. He had caught sight of a spider that had crawled in through the window and was making its way across the floor. He felt drawn to the spider . . . they were connected.

Piper's voice brought him out of the fog. "This whole family needs a shrink."

Paige orbed into the room, and Chris immediately thrust a potion at her. "You need to bless this vanquishing potion."

She frowned at him. "Wow. Hello to you too."

He held up his hands. "Hey, the book says for all three of you to bless it. Phoebe will help you. Piper, can I talk to you, please?"

Lucky pulled a face. "Why are you calling Grams that?"

"Yeah," Piper agreed. "What happened to mom?"

The spider called him. She needed him. They were connected. He couldn't fail her. Chris took Piper's hand and guided her into the conservatory where the spider waited for its prize.

"Chris, your eyes are dilated," his mother said, worried.

He tilted his head to the side, contemplating her words. "Are they?"

The spider transformed into the pale woman from the parking garage, and before Piper could even flick her hands, the Spider Demon shot webbing out of her hands, pinning the eldest Charmed One against the wall and wrapping her in a large cacoon.

"Okay we got it," Phoebe announced coming into the room, "she didn't even . . .faint."

Paige threw the vanquishing potion, but Chris reached out and snatched it from the air. He had to protect the spider. They were one now. He didn't even hear Paige's indignant question. He quickly reached her, throwing her to the ground before moving to fight Phoebe. She knocked the potion from his hand and it rolled toward Paige. When he turned to look at it, Pheobe landed a solid kick to his head, and his world went black.

Paige threw the potion again, but the demon turned back into a spider and escaped out the window. She then turned and spotted the giant cocoon on the wall. "Oh no."

Lucky popped his head into the room wondering, "What's going on?" He frowned, noticing his father unconscious on the ground. "Dad?"

"He's kinda turning into a Spider Demon at the moment," Paige explained. "We had to make him go to sleep until we can turn him back."

"Oh. Okay," Lucky said, as though it were the most common thing in the world.

Phoebe bent down to Lucky's height. "Hi there. Do you think you could orb your dad to the basement for a little bit? Just till we can figure out how to help him?"

"Sure," Lucky answered. With the wave of his hand, he sent his father down to the basement. Even though Aunt Phoebe didn't mention it, he decided to put an anti-orbing block on the basement too. He figured if they wanted his Dad down there he should actually make sure he stayed down there. With that task complete he noted the giant cocoon on the wall. "Grams?"

Paige nodded. "Yeah. 'Fraid so."

Lucky closed his eyes and reached out with his abilities. After a moment, he responded, "She's ok – sleeping I think. The stuff around her is full of magic to keep her safe."

"Well, that's good," Phoebe said. "At least we know she's not in immediate danger."

"Yeah, but how do we get her out?" Paige wondered. After a moment she asked, "How about Leo?"

"Are you kidding? Piper will kill us," Phoebe argued.

Paige, weighing their options decided, "Well, she can kill us after she and Chris are safe." Looking up to the ceiling she shouted, "Leo!"

Almost immediately a shower of blue and white lights came down from the ceiling forming Leo, who was wearing his golden Elder robes. With a serene face and passive voice, he greeted, "Phoebe, Paige."

"Grandpa Leo?"

The Elder slowly turned toward the sound of the small voice and couldn't hide his surprise when he found a young boy with a mop of brown hair and startling green eyes looking up at him. He smiled unsurely. "Excuse me?"

Lucky turned to Phoebe looking miserable. "He doesn't know me, does he?"

She shook her head. "Sorry."

"I hate the past," the little boy grumbled.

Leo frowned. "The past?" He turned to the Charmed Ones, "What's going on?"

"We need you to tell us how to get Piper out of there," Paige said, pointing to the cocoon.

Leo turned to look at the cocoon. "Uh well, the only way to get her out of there is to vanquish the Spider Demon, but it's okay, the cocoon is meant for preservation, so she's safe for now."

"Told ya," Lucky said proudly, earning another confused look from the Elder.

"Well, if Piper is safe then that means Chris is too," Phoebe deduced, relieved.

"Chris?" Leo asked. "He's in there too?"

Paige glared at Phoebe before answering, "No, he's not in there, Leo. He's in the basement."

Off Leo's puzzled expression, Phoebe explained, "Yeah, he was acting a little crazy after the Spider Demon infected him, so we locked him in the basement."

Leo nodded. Then after a moment decided, "I'll go talk to him."

Before anyone could stop him, the Elder marched over to the door to the basement and went down the stairs. In the dark he couldn't see Chris anywhere. "Chris? Chris? Chris, I'd like to talk to you, it's Leo."

Chris stepped out of the shadows, a snarl on his face as he threw his hand out at Leo palm up, web shooting out from it. "Bastard!"

Leo orbed out and back to the kitchen where everyone was waiting. He quickly slammed shut the door, leaning against it looking more than a little shaken from the experience.

"What happened?" Paige asked.

"He attacked me," Leo answered, shocked.

"He's got issues," Phoebe explained.

"Issues?"

Paige glared at her sibling. "Yeah, from being infected."

Phoebe said through her mouth, "No, I think his issues precede that, don't you, Paige?"

Leo watched the exchange, realizing he was missing some key piece of information. "Something you're not telling me?"

Lucky nodded emphatically, "Oh yeah. Bunches."

Paige wrinkled her nose at the child, but he just smiled innocently at her.

"If he's going to help us, we're going to have to tell him," Phoebe tried again.

"It's Piper's business," Paige shot back.

Leo frowned. "Tell me what?"

Phoebe scrunched up her face, bouncing with the effort of not saying anything, but eventually, her lack of will power made it impossible, and she let out in a rush, "Chris is your son."

As Leo's face fell, he mechanically moved toward the table.

"Don't we all feel better?" Phoebe asked.

Lucky and Paige both shook their heads at her.

Leo slumped down in the chair, the weight of the revelation pushing him down with more force than gravity. Chris was his son. The man he had physically assaulted twice was his child. The time traveler he'd petitioned to get sent back to a hellish future was his flesh and blood. The whitelighter whose soul he'd once tried to have recycled was his little boy. He'd once told Chris to his face he wasn't family. He felt sick.

Leo suddenly realized what the child standing next to Paige had said when he'd first orbed into the manor. Looking at the little boy with those brilliant green eyes, he said numbly, "You called me Grandpa Leo . . ." He turned to his sister-in-laws, mouth agape, eyes wide and tone completely shocked, "Chris has a son?"

TBC . . .


	9. Little Boy Blue

Thank you soooo much to sise87, Callisto Nicol and Anthony. Your reviews inspired my muse so much I think this may be the longest chapter I've ever done.

Second part of Spin City, so again, the lines used are from the show, and I can't get credit. Did change some things for my own purposes, though. With that said, hope you like it :)

Chapter 9

Leo Wyatt had been part of the magical community for sixty-two years. During this time he'd seen the unbelievable happen nearly daily. As a whitelighter and now an Elder, he had extensive knowledge about everything pertaining to magic. Therefore, he was an extremely difficult person to unbalance. After all, it was easy to stay calm when you knew anything was possible and had all the information. Only right now, Leo felt like he knew nothing.

Chris Perry, the man he held personally responsible for ruining his marriage and tearing him away from his family, _was_ family. The man who'd trapped him in Valhalla was his son. A son he'd mistrusted, insulted, and even physically assaulted. Even though he and Chris had started to get on better by the time Leo left to become a full-time Elder, Leo couldn't stop thinking about every horrible thing he'd ever said and done to his own child, and it was drowning him in guilt.

How had he not figured it out? Who else aside from a Halliwell would ever be so arrogant and reckless as to actually travel through time with the insane idea of actually changing history? Who else aside from family would be so brave and relentless in a mission to save Wyatt? Leo Wyatt felt like a complete fool.

Then, as if that weren't enough, there was the little boy standing in the kitchen with a mop of brown hair and strikingly familiar green eyes who had called him 'Grandpa Leo'. He looked just like Chris, but he was at least four or five years old. It didn't make sense. Chris couldn't possibly have abandoned a son in the future when he came here, right?

Leo turned to his sister-in-laws, still reeling from the shock of it all as he asked, "Chris has a son?"

"Well," Paige drew out, one shoulder rising in half a shrug, "that gets a little bit complicated. See, Lucky is from the future Chris makes when we save Wyatt." She excitedly pointed out, "So, good news is we do save Wyatt." She deflated, pulling a face, "We just don't really know when or how. Anyway, there was something about a paradox and two versions of Chris – to be honest didn't understand it, but anyway, he cast a spell to find Chris and ended up here."

"This is Lucky," Phoebe explained gesturing at the little boy.

Leo smiled at the child, trying not to choke on his emotions as he said, "Hi, Lucky."

"Grandpa, can I have this?" the little boy asked, pointing at an apple up on the counter.

The Elder's smile widened at the child's innocence. With all the chaos of the situation most children would be crying and afraid and confused, but Lucky was completely calm. Hungry apparently but unconcerned by everything happening. Leo could tell he was a very special little boy. He was definitely Chris through and through.

Leo handed him the apple from the bowl and moved to squat in front him so they were eye level. He kept his voice light. "So, Lucky, this must be pretty confusing, huh? Seeing all of us looking so different and not remembering what you remember?"

Lucky shrugged taking a big bite from the apple. When he'd swallowed, he replied, "It's weird, but what in our family isn't?"

His grandfather laughed lightly. "That's true. You're a very smart little boy." He pursed his lips then, not wanting to frighten the boy, but also wanting to make sure he was truly all right. "So, your Dad is kinda sick right now, but we're gonna make him better. I promise."

Lucky was about to take another bite of apple but paused, frowning. "You can feel it too, right? The magic?"

"What do you mean?"

"Dad's magic is wrong," Lucky said, sounding more serious than a five year old should.

Leo frowned as he realized what the boy was telling him. "You can feel magic?"

"Yeah, he can," Phoebe answered for him. "He was even able to tell us the cocoon was protecting Piper."

"That's not possible," Leo breathed, staring at his grandson in shock as the child happily munched on his apple, now bored with the conversation.

Paige folded her arms. "Why not?"

Leo rose from his squat turning to his sister-in-laws, "Because that's a very rare power normally only found in very powerful Elders. They use the ability to keep track of the ebb and flow of magic – the great balance. They can also use it to know which powers to give to certain witches, and how to progress those powers appropriately."

"But Leo," Phoebe argued, "you were an Elder when Piper got pregnant in the spirit realm. Chris would be part Elder, so Lucky would be too."

Her brother-in-law shook his head, "No, there's more to it. Like I said, it's a rare gift even among Elders. I think it's a sign Lucky has a big part to play in the grand design."

"Well, you can always ask Casey about it," Paige said. She pulled a face, "Speaking of which, I should probably go pick her up at the club. I'm sure she finished getting everything set up a while ago."

As Paige orbed away, Leo turned to Phoebe, confused. "Who's Casey?"

Phoebe smiled nervously. "Uh, well, that would be Lucky's mom, who is also in the past." She waved her hand, "Long story. Right now, we need to focus on helping Piper and Chris."

"Right," Leo agreed, taking a breath to focus. "You're right."

"That's the spirit," Phoebe cheered.

Leo tried to remember everything he knew about the Spider Demon. Knowledge was power, and he had a lot of knowledge. Now just to think of the part that may be useful. "Well, uh, if I remember correctly, the Spider Demon's last victim was a wizard. Maybe I should go to Magic School and see if there's something there I can use to scry for him."

"What about Chris?" Phoebe wondered.

"Check the Book of Shadows. I think there's an antidote."

Phoebe smiled softly. "Okay. Welcome home."

Meanwhile down in the basement, Chris found himself struggling against the invading presence in his magic. He felt like his own essence was turning against him, pulling him to the will of another. His innards burned. While the energy and light of his magic had always served as a comfort to him, reaching out to it now left him feeling angry and so unbearably empty. He could feel the darkness spreading, and eventually, he wouldn't be able to fight it anymore.

A voice floated in his mind. "Chris . . .Chris, come to me, Chris."

He didn't want to. He wanted to tell the voice where to go and how to get there, but his body wasn't listening to him right now, so he stood.

"That's right. Over here," the voice cooed, "Come closer."

Chris tried to resist but his feet kept moving, dragging their way across the basement floor toward an arch in the support beams. The darkness in his magic flared painfully, and he found himself raising a hand, webbing shooting into to the arch forming a web.

The face of the Spider Demon appeared in the web, an approving smirk on her face. "You're learning quickly."

"What did you do to me?" Chris managed to growl.

"I think you know," she replied coyly. Her face hardened. "Now bring me the cocoon."

Chris shook his head. "No."

The angry fire burning through his magic flared, searing him from the inside out. The pain was excruciating, like every organ, tissue and muscle was being singed with the hottest fire. He cried out and fell to his knees.

"You can't resist it – what's happening to you," the demon taunted. "Don't fight it. Embrace your new powers. Use them."

"I don't understand," Chris replied through ragged breath.

"You will, my sweet. All in good time." The demon chuckled darkly. "All in good time"

The demon was playing with him, and he felt powerless to stop it. Suddenly, a rage unlike anything he'd felt in so long burned and boiled and bubbled over, and it made him feel strong. The anger made the pain stop. He rose to his feet and succumbed to the heat coursing through his magic, thrashing out with his hands to destroy the web.

It felt good to be powerful . . .

000

Lucky didn't like Magic School. It was so big and everyone always stared at him. They'd whisper about his family. They were impressed because his Grams was a Charmed One and his Uncle was the Twice Blessed. They picked on him because his Grandpa was the Headmaster. Some of the older kids said mean things about his parents. They also called him words he didn't understand, but was smart enough to know weren't nice.

Magic School in the past wasn't so bad. He'd gone to some of the classes today, and no one had paid much attention to him. One of the other boys had wanted to play a card game over lunch break. No one had ever wanted to play with him before outside his big cousins. The teachers were mostly different, but they didn't constantly call on him to do things or answer questions. He might learn to like this place.

If only the man with the wild hair and beady brown eyes weren't here. Lucky didn't like him at all. The man had stared at him with a funny look all day, and now, while the man was talking to his Grandpa Leo, Lucky got a very bad feeling from him. His magic was good, but the man felt bad.

"Leo," wild hair was saying lowly, "this is a serious matter, and one that we have been over countless times. You abandoned the other Elders without so much as a warning."

His Grandpa seemed annoyed with the man when he answered, "Yeah, well something came up."

"You can't just pop on down whenever you feel the need arise," the bad man said sounding upset, "You're not just putting yourself at risk, you're putting all Elders at risk too."

Grandpa Leo spun around saying loudly, "I'm trying to save my son."

Lucky didn't know why his grandfather was so worried. They just had to fix the magic, and Dad would be all right. It wasn't like this sort of thing didn't happen all the time. It was like his Dad was always saying – They were Halliwells - weird was very normal, and the scary not so scary at all.

"Wyatt? Has something happened to him?"

Lucky frowned at the beady eyed man. He could tell the man didn't like Uncle Wyatt. Okay, so sometimes Uncle Wy bugged him too, especially when it came to Momma, but he loved his uncle. No one could be mean to him or hurt him . . . unless it was Lucky, but he really didn't mean it. Usually.

"No, not Wyatt, to Chris." Wild hair looked super surprised so Grandpa Leo had to explain, "I know, I just found out myself. I don't have time to explain. If I don't find the demon who hurt him, I may not be able to figure out why he hates me so much."

"Dad doesn't hate you," Lucky couldn't help but interrupt. "You're awesome, Grandpa."

"Dad? Grandpa?" the strange man questioned.

Leo smiled at his grandson before reaching in a cabinet and pulling out a long wooden wand with ornate designs carved into it. He returned his attention to the other man. "Gideon, this is Lucky. He's Chris' son, which is an even longer story. I haven't even really heard it all yet."

Gideon, as Grandpa Leo had called him, started staring again. His beady eyes were making Lucky uncomfortable, and the little boy shifted, putting himself behind his grandfather's legs.

"He's a very special little boy," Gideon commented, his eyes still trained on Lucky. "I sense great power within him. Much like Wyatt."

A shiver ran up Lucky's back. He really didn't like this man. "Grandpa, can we go now?"

"I got it," Leo confirmed to his grandson. "We can go." He turned to look at Gideon once more. "I dropped Wyatt off in the nursery just to be on the safe side. I hope that's all right?"

"Of course."

Lucky was surprised when his grandpa took his hand and orbed them both away. Didn't his grandpa know he could orb himself? He'd been doing it since the day he was born. Maybe Grandpa just wanted to hold his hand? After all, Gideon was pretty creepy.

Once the last of the orb trail had vanished a small, bald man with thick glasses walked into the room looking extremely nervous. He asked Gideon, "Chris is his son too? And who was the boy?"

"Apparently," Gideon replied, a bit distractedly. "Actually, come to think of it, that does explain why he came all the way from the future to save Wyatt."

"Save him from us you mean," Sigmund said, worried and a bit remorseful.

"If he knew he wouldn't still be searching," Gideon concluded. His brows knit together in concern. "I'm troubled by the boy, though. I could sense the powers of an Elder coursing through him along with something else . . . something old. It's not right."

Sigmund's brow was slick with sweat, the guilt and worry growing in him each day. "He's just a little boy, Gideon. What are you saying?"

"When the time is right, both Wyatt and Lucky will be sacrificed, and the greater good will be served."

000

Leo and Lucky orbed to the attic in the manor to grab the scrying crystal and a map before quickly orbing down to the dining room to check in with Paige and Phoebe. Leo was surprised to find a third woman sitting at the table handing Phoebe the last ingredient for the antidote she was making.

"Hi, Momma," Lucky greeted, sitting down next to her at the table. "Did you hear Dad is turning into a Spider?"

"I did," she confirmed, ruffling the child's hair affectionately. "Did you have supper yet?"

"I had an apple earlier."

Casey looked over at Leo and smiled brightly. "Hi Leo . . . err, Mr. Wyatt." She blushed, not quite sure what the Elder would think of her considering Piper's past version had made her dislike well known.

Leo returned her smile fully. "Leo is fine. I take it you're Casey, Lucky's mom?"

"Yes, sir."

The Elder didn't fail to notice how very young the woman looked. He definitely would be finding out more about her and Chris' relationship later. It seemed Chris' reckless nature wouldn't be changing in the new future. It just appeared to have a different outlet.

"Did you need anything else?" Casey asked Phoebe.

Phoebe shook her head. "No, sweetie. I just hope. . ." she noticed Lucky and didn't have the heart to finish the rest of the thought. Instead she said, "You just get that little guy fed, okay? We'll handle it from here."

"Okay." Casey held out her hand to Lucky. "Let's go, _Lucerito_. I'll make you some supper."

As the two walked into the kitchen, Phoebe turned her attention to Leo, smiling as she spotted the scrying materials in his hands. "I gotta tell you, Leo, whatever Chris has against you in the future, it can't be your lack of determination."

"Still, you might not be in this mess if I hadn't been gone so long."

Paige gave a little shrug replying, "Well, you have to do what you have to do."

Phoebe suddenly felt an intense anger and frustration wash over her. She suddenly found herself snapping at her brother-in-law, "My god, Leo, can't you think of anyone but yourself?"

Her sister frowned at her. "Phoebe."

Phoebe frowned, realizing she had no idea why she'd said those words. "Yeah, that was kind of weird."

"Yeah," Paige agreed.

The anger came again, almost bordering on rage. Phoebe felt herself heat with the intensity of the emotion and shouted, "You totally bailed on us."

"What the hell?" Paige questioned.

Realizing the feelings and words were definitely not hers, Phoebe guessed, "Okay, I think maybe I'm channeling Chris' anger?"

"But he's in the basement," Leo pointed out. "Can you empath from so far away?"

Phoebe shrugged with one arm. "I don't know. Maybe my powers are expanding?"

Paige looked around the room warily as she offered, "Or he's closer than we think."

All three turned just in time to see a spider scurrying across the dining room floor toward the parlor. A white light encased the spider, which quickly transformed into Chris. His eyes were completely red with deep dark circles around them. He moved to grab the cocoon containing Piper.

Phoebe reached him first, sliding next to him crying out, "No!"

Chris flung a hand out, shooting a string of web at Phoebe, pinning her right hand above her head against the wall under the stairs. His other hand quickly came up next, releasing more webbing to lock her remaining hand up on the wall as well.

As soon as Paige reached the parlor she threw the potion at him, but he quickly tossed out more webbing, knocking it to the floor. Then, he extended both hands, shooting dual lines of webbing at Paige. She went flying back into the rail of the stairs, her hands trapped in the sticky webbing up by her shoulders, effectively trapping her several feet off the ground.

Leo marched into the room, stopping to stand in front of his son. "Chris, stop. This isn't you."

Chris grabbed the Elder by the throat, his long black nails digging into the other man's neck as he roughly shoved him back against the wall. He flashed pointed teeth as he snarled, "Wanna bet?"

From her spot on the wall, Phoebe begged, "Chris, don't."

"He's your father," Paige tried.

Chris hissed at Leo but for a moment his eyes flashed back to their normal green. Leo would never forget the venom that still remained in those eyes though. It wasn't just the infection causing Chris to squeeze his throat. His son truly hated him.

Chris' eyes morphed back to the blood red color brought on from the Spider Demon infection, and he hurled Leo up the stairs with a super human strength. The Elder fell at the top of the landing with a painful thud. No sooner had he risen to his feet, moving to turn to face his son, then he found webbing soaring toward him, pinning his right hand up by his head and his left down by his side, trapping him in the corner of the wall.

Having heard all the commotion, Casey informed Lucky to stay in the kitchen while she hurried toward the parlor. Taking in the situation with all the experience growing up with the Halliwells had given her, she understood immediately what was happening and positioned herself between her friend and the cocoon harboring Piper.

"Move," Chris' voice ordered, cold and low.

Casey held her ground. "You're stronger than this. Fight it. Remember who you are, and where you come from. You're not going to let some little Spider Demon get the better of you, are you, _Corazoncito_?"

Chris had reached her now and tilted his head regarding her for a moment. At the use of the familiar nickname, the red of his eyes disappeared again. The green eyes locked on her coffee pair, and she could see so much confusion and pain in them. His hand slowly rose to touch her face, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb.

Suddenly, he hissed in pain, stumbling backward. She reached out, grabbing his arm to steady him, but his eyes had returned to the blood red hue, and he reacted by roughly throwing her to the floor. Realizing the demon's infection had fully taken control, Casey flicked her hands at him, hoping he might not be enough of a good witch anymore to stop her power from working. It didn't faze him, and he responded by hissing angrily and shooting strings of web down at her, pinning her to the ground.

Without any more impediments, Chris marched over to Piper and put a hand on the cocoon. With one last angry look back at Leo, he orbed out with his mother.

"Bug spray," Paige grumbled. "We should've used bug spray."

Phoebe struggled against the webbing, groaning in frustration when it didn't budge. "I can't break free. Paige, can you orb?"

"No, I tried."

"Damn it," Leo cursed in frustration.

Paige's eyebrows went up. "Are Elders even allowed to swear?"

"No, but fathers are," he answered. "Especially ones whose kid tries to kill him."

"Well, it wasn't Chris, Leo," Paige tried to comfort him, "it was a demon."

Leo shook his head. "No some of it was Chris. I saw it in his eyes."

"I think he's right," Casey softly confirmed. "Chris can orb, and he wouldn't freeze. Good news is that means he can still be saved."

"Yeah, well, can we?" Paige questioned sharply feeling helpless.

Casey shouted, "Lucky, sweetie, can you come here please?"

A few minutes later Lucky walked into the parlor, half a sandwich in hand. He took a big bite and tilted his head in amusement as he spotted all the adults trapped in strange positions by some sort of spider webs. When he swallowed his food, he grinned and commented, "Spider Dad kicked your butts, huh?"

"Lucas," Casey drew out.

"Sorry, but you guys look really funny."

His mother let out a frustrated breath. "Lorenzo. Enough. Come help get us free, so we can go save your dad."

Looking duly chastised, Lucky moved to her side, kneeling next to her on the floor. He looked down at the webbing and after a few seconds his eyes flashed golden. When they returned to his normal green, he wrinkled his nose. "It eats magic. I can't blow it up or orb it off. I might be able to turn it normal, though."

Before any of the adults could question what he meant, Lucky reached his hand out over the webbing his eyes returning to the strange gold glow. A swirl of darkness rose up from the webbing before flashing white and disappearing.

When Casey moved her hands, the webbing was no longer the stuff of steel but as delicate and fragile as any other spider web a person would encounter. She frowned at her son. "What was that?"

He blinked, his eyes returning to jade. "What was what?"

"What you just did to the webbing."

"I took its magic away."

Leo numbly responded, "No one has that power with a single touch. Not even an Elder . . ."

"Uncle Wyatt can do it," Lucky argued. "He's just doesn't like to. He says it hurts his head."

"But it doesn't hurt your head?" his mother wondered.

"Nope, but I like puzzles. Uncle Wyatt doesn't like puzzles."

Phoebe asked Paige, "Any idea what they're talking about?"

"Nope not a clue," Paige answered. She then said more loudly, "A little help here, please?"

Lucky turned to face the three adults and held up his hands. Again, his eyes glowed with intense golden light. Soon darkness rose up and out of the remaining webbing twisting and turning and fading into nothing. Unfortunately, with the magic released, the webbing snapped and everyone fell to the ground. Paige, being a bit higher off the ground, fell harder, crashing into the standing lamp, breaking it and landing on her stomach.

As Paige looked up with annoyance at her great nephew, his eyes returned to a sparkling jade and he smiled down at her, commenting cheerfully, "You're down now."

000

Chris positioned the cocoon up on a large spider web on the wall of his master's cave. His master came up behind him, her deep red lips turned up in a pleased smile as she approached him. There was something so alluring about her. He wanted to please her. He was desperate to make his master happy in any way he could.

"I knew you wouldn't disappointment me," she purred.

"Thanks to you for showing me how," he replied. Then, he couldn't help but wonder, "Now what?"

"You've been ever so helpful," she cooed, lightly running her finger up his chest. For a moment he thought maybe she would reward him for his service to her, but then, she shoved him out of the way finishing, "But, if you don't mind I prefer to dine alone."

The demon dug her nails into the sides of the cocoon, which glowed a soft white as the demon moaned in pleasure at her feast. "So divine."

Chris was overcome with instant pain. He fell to the ground writhing in agony. He felt like thousands of volts of electricity were coursing through him, burning and zapping through every part of him. He barely managed to gasp out, "What's happening?"

"I gather you weren't counting on this. It's not just her magic I'm feeding on. It's her baby's too – yours."

Chris, groaning in pain, clawed at the dirt, trying to ground himself so he could think - to try to come up with a way to stop her. He couldn't think though. Could barely move the pain was so intense. His magic was part of him – part of the essence of his being, and she was essentially devouring it. Soon there would be nothing left of his magic or him.

000

Leo was sitting at the kitchen table trying to use the wand to scry for the wizard the Spider Demon had captured, but so far the crystal refused to drop. Every second was a second Piper and his son were in danger, and he felt like he was failing them. Frustrated he grumbled, "I don't understand why this isn't working. Maybe I have the wrong wizard."

Phoebe came walking up behind him and offered sadly, "Or maybe because there's nothing to find. Leo, you've got to stop beating yourself up over this okay. It's not your fault."

"I just don't know why Chris hates me so much," Leo explained. "I get that I did things since he's come back . . . things I will always regret, but I didn't know who he was – not that I'm making excuses – it's just he should understand how protective I am of my family. Also, he knew who I was, and he still trapped me in Valhalla. He almost caused himself not to exist because he wanted to get rid of me. Phoebe, there were times he would say something with such contempt, and I thought it was because I was on to his secrets, but really, it was because he hated me long before he ever came through that time portal."

"Yeah, but Leo, it's in the future. It hasn't happened yet, so you can change it," Phoebe argued.

Casey, who was leaning in the doorway, commented, "You must. My Chris and his Dad are very close."

Leo turned toward her, his face so full of hope he was near tears. "Really?"

She locked gazes with him to emphasize the truth to her words. "You are a great father, and Chris loves you. You were actually the first one he told about Lucky. He was terrified, and he turned to you. That's the kind of relationship you have in my world."

"I just have to make sure Chris lives long enough to tell me how to make that world happen," Leo replied, struggling to keep positive. He let out a breath as he realized, "Why am I scrying for the wizard? I should be scrying for Piper."

Phoebe hurried to grab Piper's keys and handed them to Leo. He started to scry again but with a new target, and the crystal dropped almost immediately. He looked up at Phoebe, "Got her."

"Okay, I'll take the antidote," Phoebe said, "and you take the vanquishing potion. Paige!"

"Piper didn't bless it," Leo pointed out, anxiously.

"It's all we've got," Phoebe argued.

Leo continued, "But we need the power of three. How are we gonna make up for Piper?"

Paige walked into the room with Lucky following her. She paused in the entrance and folded her arms, a smile forming on her face as she looked between Lucky and Casey. "How about with a little help from our extended family?"

Leo nodded a smile of his own forming. "That just may work. Let's go."

After finding out where they were going, Lucky took his mother's hand and orbed her while Paige took Phoebe, and Leo transported himself. When they rematerialized it was in front of a cave in a heavily wooded area. The cave had a large square opening, but it was covered in magical webbing.

Phoebe frowned at the entrance wondering, "So how do we get in?"

"We can't," Leo concluded. "It's impenetrable."

Lucky tilted his head, his eyes flashing golden. He moved over to the doorway and put his hand on the webbing. Unlike before, the process didn't happen immediately. The doorway sparked angrily and shook, sending the little boy flying backward. Leo caught him in his arms.

His grandson looked up at him with a big smile, his eyes green and sparkling with amusement. "That was awesome!"

"Are you ok?" Casey asked, hurrying over to him.

He nodded, his thick brown bangs bobbing up and down on his forehead. "Yup. This stuff isn't like what you guys were stuck in. It goes to the demon. It'll only go away if she gets vanquished, but I think I probably made her mad . . ."

Inside the cave, the Spider Demon was enjoying her magical feast when suddenly she felt a painful zapping run through her. Someone was tampering with her magic. Aggravated, she removed her fingernails from Piper's side and looked back to see her webbing spark. "Damn it. Can't a demon eat in peace?"

She stepped callously over Chris, who was still writhing in pain, and phased through her webbing. She paused just outside her cave to cast a dark look at Lucky, who was now standing next to Leo. She could sense the obnoxious child had been the source of the meddling and her subsequent pain. "You're pissing me off, you know?"

"Yeah, that's the idea," Paige tossed back.

The demon smirked arrogantly back at her. "You think you can take me without your sister?"

"We'll just have to see," Paige replied, taking a step closer to the demon.

The demon hit her across the face sending the youngest Charmed One flying to the ground. Phoebe landed a solid kick to the demon's stomach sending her falling to her side on the ground. Hoping to catch her while she was down, Casey threw the vanquishing potion at her, but the demon dodged it by transforming into a spider, which started scurrying back toward the cave entrance.

"Step on her!" Paige called out, not sure who was closest to the demon.

Lucky jumped up and landed with both feet right on top of the spider. He twisted his feet, squishing her, green goo coming out and onto his shoes.

"Ooh that's gross," Phoebe commented, making a face.

"I just bought you those shoes," Casey lamented.

Lucky shrugged. "Sorry."

With the Spider Demon vanquished, the webbing blocking the entrance to the cave vanished, and Paige got to her feet and moved to Leo, asking for him to give her the antidote. She figured she and Chris got along fairly well. He might not attack her immediately now the Spider Demon's hold was gone.

"No," the Elder argued. "This is my responsibility."

He headed to the cave, determined to make everything right. As he entered the darkness of the cave, he spotted the white cocoon hanging on the wall and gently lowered it to the ground. With the Spider Demon gone, it too had lost its magical properties, and Leo was easily able to release Piper from its confines.

"Piper, are you okay?" he asked, helping her to her feet. He couldn't help but wince as he took in the sight of her. She was heavily pregnant by now, and he couldn't help but feel the sting of having already missed so much of Chris' life. He should have been there from the beginning, listening to his son's heartbeat for the first time or seeing his sonogram.

"I think so," Piper answered, obviously uncomfortable by his presence. She half used some webbing to try to hide her stomach. "What are you doing here?"

"It's a long story," he answered with a small smile as he guided her toward the entrance.

An angry hiss drew their attention toward the back of the cave, and Piper asked, worried. "What's that?"

Chris stepped out of the shadows, a scowl on his face, his eyes still blood red.

Leo glanced at Piper, sadly, answering, "Our little boy."

Piper shot a look of shock back at him. She realized then he knew the truth. He knew Chris was their son, and she was going to have a lot of explaining to do for not telling him. She could only imagine how bluntly her sisters probably had broken the news, and she felt a pang of guilt. Before she could apologize or ask any questions, she heard Leo tell her she had to get out of there, and she felt the familiar warmth of orb lights taking her away.

Chris stalked closer to Leo, a lethal gleam in his eyes. He stepped to the cave entrance and replaced the Spider Demon's web door with one of his own, locking the rest of his family out of the cave. As soon as he had prevented them from entering, he turned on Leo, moving toward him with a predatory gait. He felt intense satisfaction as the man backed away from him nervously.

"Alright, Chris, come on," Leo tried, as he backed himself into an old stone table in the middle of the cave. "Can we just talk about this a minute?"

"A minute?" Chris snarled, grabbing him by the throat and squeezing painfully. "We have the next hundred years."

With his free hand Chris shot out strings of webbing, constructing a large spider web hanging from the ceiling all the way to the floor. His trap complete, he violently hurled Leo backwards into it, locking him in place. Pleased with his efforts, Chris paced back and forth in front of his prey. He snidely remarked, "Well, at least we'll have plenty of time to get to know each other, _Dad_."

"See that's what I'm talking about," Leo argued. "That's not the demon talking. That's you talking, Chris. It's not too late. You just have to fight it."

"Why fight when I've already won?" Chris asked, shooting more webbing at Leo's left hand, further trapping him.

"Tell me why you hate me so much, Chris, huh?" Leo challenged. "What did I do to become such a bad dad?"

"It doesn't matter anymore," the young man darkly replied.

"No?" Leo scoffed, a plan forming in his mind. If he could get Chris angry, to lose control, he might be able to find an opening and get free. He might be able to save his son's humanity. He continued, taunting, "The hell it doesn't. Deep down you hate my guts. Huh? Admit it. Come on, admit it." As Chris came nearer, he knew it was working, and he questioned condescendingly, "What, you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid of you," Chris answered evenly.

Leo wasn't sure what buttons to push now, but he was relieved at least to hear his son didn't fear him. Hated him yes, but not afraid. He tried to stall for time to think. "No? Then why don't you tell me what I did to you? What, did I miss a school play?" He noted no reaction. He tried something else, upping his sarcasm, "Did I take away your favorite toy?" A low hiss came in response, but not enough emotion behind it to manipulate. He decided to go for broke, "Did I play favorites with Wyatt?"

The rage was so instant, so startling, Leo was completely taken off guard as Chris grabbed him with both hands and yanked him from the web and threw him all the way across the cavern. Leo's back hit the far wall hard, pain shooting all the way down his legs as he fell, crumpling to the ground. He didn't even have a chance to stand before Chris was on him again, lifting him up and slamming into the wall. Leo cried out, "Chris, don't!"

Chris punched him in the stomach and each side, the blows knocking the air from the Elder's lungs. The force behind each hit seemed to grow in intensity, and Leo felt for a moment like he was going to be sick.

"You don't know me!" Chris yelled, throwing him to the ground, jumping on top of him, pinning him to the cold, hard floor. Chris was nothing but pure wrath now. He was screaming, "You don't know me!" over and over, and Leo knew there was no reasoning with him. Chris just struck him over and over each hit harder than the last. As the metallic taste of blood touched his tongue, Leo realized he hadn't understood the depths of pain and hate Chris harbored in regard to him. He truly wondered if his own son hated him so much he really would kill him.

Meanwhile, outside the cave, the rest of the family was trying to figure out how to save the two men. Lucky had already refused to touch the webbing, saying in his own childish way that the webbing was connected to his father now, and by tampering with it, he could hurt Chris. The others had no idea how they were going to get in now.

Piper glared at her sisters. "I told you not to bring Leo here."

"I think he just saved your life," Phoebe argued.

"Yeah, at his expense and maybe Chris' too," she replied, hotly.

Phoebe noticed Paige gingerly touching her neck. She'd gotten hurt when the Spider Demon had struck her earlier, but it didn't seem to be bleeding. Still, she was concerned. "Maybe you should take the antidote."

"No, no I'm fine," Paige waved her off. "We need to save it for Chris."

Piper winced, grabbing her stomach. "Ow."

"Kidney shot?" Casey questioned, remembering vividly the pain those caused.

Piper frowned, a thought occurring to her. "Maybe he's trying to tell me something." She turned to Phoebe, gesturing for the vial. "Give me that."

"What why?" Phoebe asked, confused.

Casey, catching on, answered, "To inoculate baby Chris. That's brilliant."

"What's in-og-u-late?" Lucky asked.

Phoebe and Paige both shrugged.

Piper snatched the potion from Phoebe and drank it. A few moments later they noticed the webbing on the entrance vanish. The mother wasted no time waddling as fast as she could into the cave, desperate to make sure her son and his father were okay. What she found shocked her.

Chris, back to normal, was punching Leo in face. Blow after blow after blow, and Leo wasn't even trying to defend himself. The man's face was covered in large cuts and bruises, his nose and mouth both bleeding.

Horrified, Piper cried out, "Chris, no!"

The mother hurried to her son's side, grabbing his arm. "Chris. Chris, look at me," she ordered, pulling him up off his father. She put her hands on his arms, locking her gaze on him. "It's okay. It's over."

The fog somewhat lifted, Chris looked down at his mother, focusing on her loving and concern filled eyes. He took ragged, shaky breaths, trying to calm down. It wasn't working. He knew he had to leave before he did something to make his mom even more upset than he already had. He threw a look over his shoulder at Leo, who was lying battered and bloodied on the ground, and instead of feeling guilty, he felt angry all over again. He pulled away from his mother's touch and stormed past his shocked aunts and out the cave.

"Dad!" Lucky called running over to Chris, wrapping his arms around him. Tired and excited his words came out in a rush. "You're okay. I knew you would be. You'd be so proud I got to come with and I-"

"-Just stop, Lucky," Chris snapped, forcefully removing the child from his person. "I can't deal with you right now." Then, without another word, he orbed away.

Lucky's bottom lip trembled just slightly, his eyes moist as he turned to his mother. "Why is he mad at me?"

Casey moved to her son's side, immediately embracing him. "No, no, _Lucerito_. He's just had a really bad day. It's not you." She lovingly pushed his bangs from his eyes. "You did amazing today vanquishing your first demon. I am so proud of you. But, it's late. Let's get you home, fed and then off to bed."

Lucky nodded but his eyes were on the spot Chris had been in, and a tear went down his cheek.

000

Chris didn't know how long he'd been sitting on the support beam of the Golden Gate Bridge. He just kept replaying everything over again in his mind on a loop. His entire childhood of disappointments – every missed birthday, every ignored call, every moment his father pushed him to the side to spend time with anyone else. Every stupid note of apology he'd gotten instead of actual affection. He'd burned them all when he turned ten. Then the day his mother and Casey had died. How he'd screamed till his throat was raw, but Leo couldn't be bothered. After all, it was only Chris calling. Not worth his time.

Today, he'd let himself feel all of it for the first time in so long. Normally, he buried it. It was the past. Leo was insignificant. Not even a blip on his radar. He was a grown man now. He didn't need a father. He certainly didn't need Leo. So why did it all still hurt so damn much?

Orbs lights formed in front of him on the lower cross beam, forming into the younger version of his father. Someone had apparently healed him, his face no longer battered. Chris guessed it was probably one of his Elder buddies.

"Can we talk?" Leo asked.

Chris couldn't look at him. He was so emotional he was afraid the dam would break soon. He could already feel a stinging at the back of his eyes. He answered thickly, "There is nothing to talk about."

"I think there is," Leo argued gently, "quite a bit actually."

The witchlighter shook his head, staring off into the distance. "It doesn't matter."

His words seemed to anger the Elder, whose voice came out more harshly, "It does to me, Chris. You're my son. I think I deserve to know what I did that's so bad." He continued more gently, "If it were Lucky, you'd feel the same way."

Chris flinched, realizing the way he treated his son tonight, he very well may find himself in Leo's position in the future. His stomach twisted to knots at the thought. Looking at Leo, he could see a level of desperation in the man's eyes. Something in him gave a little, and found himself answering, voice heavy with emotion, "You were never there for me. You were there for everybody else. For mom, Wyatt, half the world, but you were never there for me." He added bitterly, "You didn't have the time."

Leo winced, the words hitting him every bit as hard as Chris' fists had earlier. His eyes were glassy with moisture, and his voice was strained as he said, "Casey said we were close in her timeline, so maybe you don't just save Wyatt. Maybe you came back and saved us too."

With moisture starting to lick his lashes, Chris shook his head. His voice cracked a little as he responded, "I doubt it."

Leaving his father crushed on the bridge, Chris orbed back to the manor. While he had no faith his relationship with his father could be healed, there was one father son relationship he could still salvage, which is why he went straight to Lucky.

The little boy was in Wyatt's room, tucked into a spare bed someone had brought into the room and set up across from Wyatt's crib. Casey was sitting on the bed next to the five year old just finishing up a bedtime story. Though, from what Chris could tell, it wasn't a children's book. He frowned as he caught the title. "You read him The Hobbit?"

Lucky looked up at the sound of his voice and Chris felt his insides twist painfully at the unsure look in the child's face. The little boy had never looked at him like that before. He'd always gotten a big smile and an excited greeting but not tonight. The boy's green eyes dipped to his blankets before seeking refuge on his mother's face.

Casey was flat out glaring at him. Her voice was a forced level of pleasant. "He doesn't like children's stories. This one doesn't have anything inappropriate, so why not?"

Chris nodded dropping his eyes. Facing demons, his mother and even an evil Wyatt didn't seem as challenging as keeping the woman's gaze right now. Probably because he knew he deserved her wrath. He shoved his hands in his pockets and slowly made his way to the edge of the bed and sat next to Lucky. He wet his lips nervously. "Listen, Lucky, about earlier . . . I am so, so sorry. You were worried about me, and you were just trying to talk to me, and I wasn't very nice to you."

Lucky gave a little shrug. "It's okay. Momma told me you had a really bad day and were just cranky. I get cranky when I have bad days too sometimes."

"I really am sorry," Chris repeated. "Can you forgive me?"

The child broke into a smile. "Yeah."

Chris was a little floored by how easily the boy had let him off the hook. No tears or yelling or drama of any kind. It had taken moments for Lucky to bounce right back to his normal happy self as though nothing had happened. Chris couldn't help but genuinely smile back at him. "Thanks. Say, I want to make it up to you, though, so how about you and me and your mom take a day off tomorrow. We'll do whatever you want. It'll be your day."

Lucky lit up like a light. "Really?"

"I promise," Chris swore, his own smile growing wider at his son's excitement. He ruffled the boy's hair affectionately. "But for now, it's late, so you should probably get to sleep, okay?"

"Okay."

Casey kissed Lucky on the cheek. " _Te amo, Lucerito_. Sleep well. We'll see you in the morning."

" _Te amo, Mamά_ ," Lucky responded, his voice already heavy with sleepiness as he turned over in the bed.

Chris turned to Casey, his voice quiet as he asked, "Can we talk?"

Without a word, she walked right past him and across the hall to Piper's room. She only stopped when she'd reached the middle of the room. Her hands immediately went across her chest, the fingers tapping against her arms as her coffee brown eyes shot daggers in his direction.

When he'd gotten into the room, he shut the door behind him and turned to face the fuming latina. "Listen-"

"-No," she interrupted, her normally silky voice harsh. "You listen. You may not really be his father, but you have his face, and you have his voice, and what you say and do matter to that little boy. You hurt him tonight."

Chris winced. "I know."

"No, you don't know," she argued. "The Spider Demon was the first demon he'd ever vanquished. We'd always made sure to keep him away from vanquishes to try to keep him innocent as long as possible, but tonight, we needed his help. He was so excited and proud of himself, and all he wanted to do was tell you about it because in his mind, he'd saved his dad. You blew him off like some gnat. He will always have the memory of his father dismissing him on the day of his first vanquish because of you."

Chris closed his eyes, swallowing thickly, the guilt choking him. "I'm sorry."

She moved closer to him, her brown eyes glaring up at his green. Normally the height difference would have made the angry girl comical, but despite her neck craning to look up at him, Chris felt himself take a step back. There was a heat in her gaze not to be taken lightly. "Don't be sorry. Don't ever do it again, or I swear I will make your version of Wyatt look like a sweet little kitten, _entiendes_?"

"Understood," Chris confirmed.

Casey let out a breath and with it the anger seemed to fade. She moved to sit on the bed and patted the spot next to her. When he sat down, she put a hand on his knee. "Parents make mistakes, but it's my job to protect him, you know? If you can't do this, I need to know now. I'll find a way to explain to him you're not really his dad."

"I can do this," Chris said solemnly. "I just . . . everything with Leo brought up some really bad stuff for me. I normally don't lose control of my emotions, but once I started down that road I couldn't seem to pull back."

"You beat the hell out of him," Casey commented.

"Not my finest moment."

"Do you really hate Leo?"

He didn't hesitate. "Yes."

Casey eyebrows shot up. "Wow. I can't believe it."

Chris turned to look at her, and he could tell she was genuinely shocked by the revelation. Maybe Leo had been telling the truth on the bridge. "We're close in your timeline? Really?"

"You love your father very much. He's always been an amazing dad to you and Wyatt. Hell, he practically became my father too after I lost mine, and Mom disowned me."

Chris' voice was soft as he questioned, "Your mom disowned you?"

"Yeah. After _Papi_ died she insisted I strip my powers. When I refused, she kicked me out of the house. Once she found out I was pregnant, she cleaned out my bank accounts and then basically forgot I ever existed. She's never even met Lucky."

Chris put a hand on her arm, seeing the pain in her face and recognizing it as the same one he'd been carrying for years too. "I'm so sorry." After a moment, "I guess you really get how I feel about Leo. He was never there for me. Mom and Grandpa both died, and he still couldn't be bothered. Wyatt turned evil, but I was the son he was disappointed in because how could I have let this happen?"

"That's not _my_ Leo though," Casey argued. "The Leo of this time changes things. He was always there for you. He would do anything to make you happy. When you told him I was pregnant, he was nothing but supportive. He actually was probably the only reason Piper didn't kill us."

Chris gave a little laugh at the last bit, amused at Leo having to play referee on that one. Still, the rest? It was hard to accept. "I want to believe you, but . . . how would you feel in my shoes? After everything your mom did would you be able to just accept she could change?"

"I hate my mother," Casey said slowly, "but she's still my mother. Part of me will always long for her in my life, so if there was any chance, no matter how small, I could have a real relationship with her . . . I'd take it."

"So what you're telling me is give Leo a chance?"

She smiled up at him through her thick dark lashes. "Please? It will be worth it."

Without thinking, Chris wrapped an arm around her, pulling her small frame up against his side. She tucked her head into his shoulder, and he rested his chin on the top of her head, smiling softly as she automatically wrapped her arms around his torso.

There was something so comforting in having Casey here. He thought maybe it was because she always gave it to him straight. No pulling punches. Maybe it was because she represented everything he was fighting to save. Whatever the reason, with this woman in his arms, Chris felt hopeful for the first time in a long time.

It scared the hell out of him.

TBC. . .

Next time: We check back in with Wyatt and Molly and Lucky gets his family day :)


	10. Soulmate

Thanks so much to Callisto Nicol. Your reviews keep me typing away :)

Chapter 10

2026

Molly hadn't been to the manor much lately. To her, Halliwell manor would never feel the same without Chris up in the attic flipping through the Book of Shadows, or Lucky watching cartoons in the conservatory. She missed her boys, and being in the manor made her heart constrict painfully. Still, she had no choice today. She needed Leo's help, and he hadn't been at Magic School.

Orbing into the kitchen, Molly's eyes drifted over to the table, half expecting to see Chris reading the news on his tablet while Lucky sat next to him eating his breakfast and jabbering his ear off. The table remained empty though, and she took in a deep breath to stop herself from dwelling on the flood of emotions she had about that fact.

"Molly," Piper's surprised voice interrupted her melancholy thoughts. "What a pleasant surprise."

The whitelighter turned around to find the oldest Charmed One at the stove top making what appeared to be French toast. By the looks of it, enough to feed half of San Francisco. She offered a weak smile. "Hi, Piper."

"Wyatt's not here," Piper commented. "He doesn't come by much lately. Not unless he needs the book."

"I'm not looking for Wyatt," Molly softly replied, ignoring the fact Piper seemed to have momentarily forgotten she could sense for Wyatt if she needed to find him. The matriarch wasn't holding up well lately, yet another reason Molly found it hard to visit the manor. "I actually came to talk to Leo."

Piper blinked slowly before a wide, plastic smile formed. "Oh, sure. He was just upstairs a minute ago." Much in the same manor she'd done so often when her husband had still been a whitelighter, she looked up at the ceiling and cried, "Leo!"

The man appeared in the doorway a moment later, a small crease in his brow as he glanced over at his wife. "You don't need to yell, Piper. I'm right here. Remember? I said I was coming back."

She looked momentarily confused before recognition lit in her eyes. She pointed a finger at him, replying slowly, "Yes. I do. I remember. It's just Molly was looking for you." She pointed at the whitelighter as evidence. When Leo just smiled faintly in return, she extended a plate of French toast toward him. "Hungry?"

Molly watched as Leo gave a sad smile and accepted the plate. Anyone who'd been present the last few months knew Leo was never hungry anymore. He just could never say no to his wife. Not when her coping mechanism was cooking around the clock. Piper had gone a bit numb after Lucky had disappeared into the past. It was like the last straw had finally broken the Charmed One's back.

As Piper turned to the stove to continue cooking for whatever hordes she imagined may be coming for breakfast, Leo shared a knowing look with Molly and gestured for her to take a seat with him at the table. He pushed his plate off to the side and tried to smile warmly, but ever since his son had gone missing to the past, the smiles never reached Leo's eyes anymore. Only sadness and fear shone in the green orbs.

"I received a new charge," Molly started. "They thought I could take on more since . . ." She gestured vaguely, not wanting to mention Lucky's name in front of Piper. "They figured I would have the time for a while."

Leo winced but nodded. "It makes sense." He cleared his throat of the emotion he was struggling to keep down at the allusion to his wayward grandson. "You, uh, mentioned you needed my help?"

"The charge they gave me seems a little unusual," Molly explained. "I'm not really sure why she would need a whitelighter, and I certainly don't know how to approach her. I was hoping you might be able to give me some advice."

"I can try. Why don't you tell me what you know about her?"

Molly suddenly found a plate of French toast placed in front of her along with a cup of coffee. She jumped, startled, not having realized Piper had come over. When she glanced up, she found Piper's large plastic smile firmly in place. The witch gave a little nod before she turned back around toward the stove again. Molly shot Leo a look, but the Elder was merely numbly waiting for her answer. She let out a breath, pained at seeing such sweet people reduced to shells of themselves. "Well, they said she's a witch who's been led astray. She was apparently unknowingly involved with a demon, who was using their relationship to convince her to tap into the darker aspects of her heritage."

"Dark heritage?" Leo questioned.

"Right, this is what I find odd," Molly continued, "she's a witch but has demonic powers. Her family descended from the Salem witch trials-"

Piper suddenly dropped her pan back onto stove with a loud bang before going stone still.

Molly glanced over to make sure everything was okay when she noticed the woman subtly shaking. Her eyes darted over to Leo, and she found the man's face had gone even more pale, his mouth slightly ajar, his eyes seeing something only in his mind.

Leo finally seemed to return to the moment, his eyes locking on Molly's. His voice was quiet as he asked, "She's a phoenix isn't she?"

"Yes," Molly drew out. "Did you have one as a charge?"

Piper snorted derisively.

Leo shook his head, his eyes suddenly looking anywhere but at Molly. "No. Not a charge."

The whitelighter frowned, a pit growing in her stomach. She switched from Piper's suddenly rage filled face to Leo's sympathy filled one and had a feeling whatever they knew wasn't going to make her feel any better about her new charge. She swallowed a lump in her throat and asked, "What aren't you saying?"

"What's your charge's name?" Leo asked gently.

"Bianca Bishop."

The mountain of French toast suddenly exploded, bits of bread flying all over the kitchen. Piper was shaking, her voice firm and low as she declared, "No. No way are they doing this to her. It's not right, Leo. How could they? How _dare_ they?"

Molly turned to Leo who had his eyes closed in a pained expression. She felt her mouth go dry as nerves made the pit in her stomach grow deeper and start to burn. "Leo . . .?"

"She was . . ." He hesitated struggling to get the words out. "She was his fiancée. Bianca was engaged to Chris in the other timeline."

Molly's mind spun out and she found herself laughing, a nervous, uncontrollable laugh. She couldn't stop. It was just too much. The man she loved had been gone for months now, and she missed him so much she could barely function some days. Thinking about all he was going through, all he would suffer, left her struggling to breathe, her fear for him smothering her. She was afraid it would be impossible for him to be the same man she'd loved for so long. She feared he wouldn't want her anymore. In her darkest moments, she would have horrible, painful panic attacks about him spurning her, saying he didn't love her anymore and leaving her. Losing Chris would destroy her. Now, not only did she find out he had been engaged to someone else in the other timeline, but the Elders had made this other woman her charge. She had to guide the woman who could very well steal the love of her life from her.

Leo had moved to her side, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Molly, it's going to be okay. Just breathe."

She hadn't realized when the laughing had turned to tears, but at the sound of Leo's soothing voice, she took shaky breaths, trying to regain some semblance of composure. Eventually, she found she could breathe a bit more normally, and she wiped the tears from her face. It took another moment before she could find her voice to ask, "Why? Why would the Elders do this to me?"

"Evil, sadistic, pieces of-" Piper started cursing under her breath.

Leo understood her hatred of his former peers. He'd felt the same way for a long time after Gideon had betrayed them. It had taken so long for him to remember all the good they did, all the lives they helped save. Still, he couldn't blame his wife for how she felt. The Elders had taken a lot from their family. The decision to put Molly in this position couldn't have been taken lightly. He had to believe there was a reason. "The Elders have a way of seeing things we can't. If they placed Bianca in your care they must know something we don't. She must need your help specifically."

"Sure. I can help introduce her to her future husband," Molly replied half-choking on the words.

"No," Leo argued, taking the woman's hands. "I don't believe that. Not for one minute. Chris loves you. I've watched you two grow together these past six years, and I know your love is meant to last. He proposed to you, Molly."

Molly bit her lip. "He proposed to her too. What if when he comes home he wants her back?"

"Over my dead body," Piper declared, sounding more like herself than she had in a long time. "That woman broke his heart. She betrayed him. She drug him back to the future where he could have died. Not to mention what she did to me and my sisters. Hell no! She is not getting her claws in _my_ son again."

"She what?" Molly questioned, shocked.

Leo shot Piper a look before returning his attention to Molly. "There's more to the story. I think it might help if you knew everything we know about her. It might put some of your fears to rest. If nothing else, it might give you an insight into your new charge."

"Okay," the whitelighter breathed, steeling herself. "Tell me about the other love of Chris' life."

And they did. They told her everything they knew. They told her about how Bianca had used their relationship to get close to Chris, infecting his magic, leaving him weak and vulnerable. They explained how she'd broken his heart so badly, the pain had broken through an empathy blocking potion. They told Molly about how she'd been cunning enough to cast the right spell to distract the sisters, so she could kidnap Chris from the manor and strip his powers. How she'd almost sliced Piper's throat, only stopping since Chris wasn't born yet. How Chris had left with her, taking her hand as he walked slowly to what could have been his death. It ended with them guessing how Bianca had likely died to save his life, but how they never knew for certain because Chris refused to ever talk about her. They told Molly everything they knew about the mysterious woman their son had once dreamed of marrying, and Molly realized one thing.

They really didn't know much.

000

2026

P3 hadn't changed much in the last two decades. A new paint job here and there and an extended dance floor, but the rest was almost exactly the way Piper Halliwell had designed the club when she opened it. Wyatt hadn't really wanted to change a thing when he took over. Well, except the bar top, which he replaced first thing upon taking over though that was for personal reasons rather than any actual need. Working here every day, he really didn't need the images that sprang to mind at the sight of it.

The club had maintained its status as one of the best clubs in town, and a great deal of it had to do with Wyatt's management. He hired bartenders and servers who enjoyed making people happy and knew their jobs and completed them well. He made sure the place was spotless, often coming over during the day to help clean it up himself. He also didn't mind lending a hand behind the bar when needed, which was where he was tonight. Though as distracted as he was, he was fairly certain his head bartender, Chloe, was going to kill him soon.

"Shoot," he hissed as a glass slipped through his fingers, crashing on the floor. He groaned in frustration and went to grab a broom and dustpan.

"You all right, Boss?" Chloe yelled over the noise of the crowd and band. The look on her face clearly indicated she already knew the answer.

Wyatt put on a convincing smile. "Yeah, just tired. Sorry."

Cleaning up yet another mess he'd made tonight, Wyatt dumped the remains of the glass into the bin and turned back to the bar to see who needed to be served. Out of the corner of his eye, he would have sworn he saw Casey sitting at the counter. His heart fluttered and he whipped his head in the direction of the woman only to feel his stomach drop in disappointment. While the woman had similar coloring, she was definitely not his girlfriend returned to him.

The woman had long, dark brown hair flowing past her shoulders – same as Casey, but her face was sharper. Instead of being heart-shaped and soft, the woman's face was all sharp angles and hard lines. She was also clearly a few inches taller and a bit broader. She was wearing a dark red halter top and short silver skirt, and there wasn't a man in the club who didn't notice the curves of her body. He couldn't deny this mystery woman was gorgeous, whoever she was, and she was smiling softly in his direction.

Wyatt moved to stand across from her, smiling warmly. "Welcome to P3. What can I get you?"

She flipped her hair back over her shoulder and grinned. "I'm actually here for you."

The Twice Blessed felt himself flush a bit. He was used to getting hit on when he worked; it was a hazard of being a decent looking guy working around drunk women. Still, it had been awhile since he'd had someone this good looking eyeing him that way. He smiled offering his usual response. "Sorry, I'm taken. Happily so. I make a mean Manhattan though."

"From what I hear, she's not really around at the moment," the woman replied, her eyes staring into his as her grin changed from flirtatious to taunting.

Wyatt's smile fell, his eyes narrowing sharply. "What did you just say?"

"Shame about that nephew of yours," she went on, her face reflecting a mock sympathy. "Heard he was a cute kid. Precocious, but cute."

The Twice Blessed leaned across the bar top, his voice low and threatening as he stared her down. "Who are you?"

Completely unaffected by the dangerous tone and look in his eyes, the woman gave a little shrug. "Perhaps an ally." She looked back toward the office before returning her gaze to his face. "Shall we?"

Wyatt set his jaw, trying to decide if he should even give this woman a moment of his time. After a long minute, he threw over his shoulder to Chloe, "I'm taking my ten. Cover for me."

The mystery woman smiled smugly and hopped down from the stool. She waited for him to lead the way back to the office. He forced his way through the crowds of patrons, heading toward the back room. He didn't need to look back to know the stranger was following him. She moved effortlessly through the waves of people, slipping through them with swiftness and grace. Between her stealth and the way she held herself with such confidence, Wyatt knew she was not someone to take lightly.

He held open the door to the office, waiting for her to enter.

"So chivalrous," she commented dryly as she passed by him.

Wyatt shut the door with more force than needed and turned toward her. He folded his arms over his chest, putting what Chris had dubbed his 'Twice Blessed face' on. He made sure to lower the register of his voice when he addressed her. "You obviously know who I am, which means you know the power I possess. It's not a good idea to make me angry."

The intimidation tactic had no effect on the woman, who merely smirked back at him. "I don't plan on it. Remember, I said I was interested in being your ally."

"How do you know about my family?"

"It's the talk of the underworld," she answered simply.

He narrowed his eyes further. "So you're a demon?"

The cocky smirk was back on her pretty face. "No, but I know a lot of them." She shrugged lightly, looking indifferent now. "I know a lot about a lot of things actually." Her dark brown eyes darted up to his face as she slowly teased, "Like the demon who tricked your nephew. The one who made your pretty little girlfriend jump through a time portal after him."

Wyatt's hands clenched, his anger rising at the mention of Casey. "Who was it?"

She smiled, waving a finger. "Now, come on. Can't very well expect me to just give it to you without something in return."

"You're trying my patience," Wyatt warned. "What do you want?"

The woman put her hands on her hips, cocking her head to one side as she regarded him carefully. "A trade. I get you your demon, and you get me a potion blessed by you."

"What kind of potion?"

She reached into the top of her shirt, pulling out a slip of paper and handing it to him. "A very complicated one. Think you can manage?"

Wyatt glanced down at the ingredients, frowning as he didn't even recognize half of them. The instructions seemed straight forward, but he had no idea what the potion would do. He looked up at her. "What's this for?"

"Does it matter?" she replied, folding her arms over her chest.

"If I'm blessing it with my power, yes, it matters."

She let out a breath, clearly annoyed. "If you must know, it's a love potion of sorts."

Wyatt snorted. "This is no love potion. Besides, I doubt you need the help."

"Flattering," she retorted with a grin, pleased, when he actually colored. She explained, "It's not your typical love potion. It's to bind two souls together, and it's not for me. It's for a buyer."

"A buyer," Wyatt questioned, "and what do you mean bind together?"

"You could say I make a living finding and selling rare magical items. This buyer wants to be linked to his lover through lifetimes. They'll be able to share thoughts and feelings like an empathic telepath." She shrugged again. "Seems a bit dramatic to me, but what the buyer wants the buyer gets."

Wyatt took a breath, glancing back down at the potion again. He really couldn't tell what it would make, and he certainly wasn't adding his blood to something without being certain. He'd need to do some research. "How long do I have to decide?"

"Twenty-four hours to make the potion or I lose my sale," she responded curtly. She added in a low voice, "And I don't like losing."

"How do I know you can help me find my demon? How do I know you're not lying?"

She smirked, a look Wyatt was really starting to hate. "You don't, but I can give you a name to tide you over. He goes by Nomed. That's all you get until the potion is in my hand. Once I get what I want, I can take you straight to him to question or vanquish as you please."

Wyatt nodded, actually considering making the deal. He let out a breath, finally asking, "How do I contact you when it's done?"

The irritating smirk was back. "I'll find you."

Then, she shimmered away.

"Not a demon," Wyatt grumbled. "Suuure."

He gave one last look to the potion recipe, wondering whether he would make it. Part of him even wondering if he _could_ make it. Chris had gotten their mother's skill for potions, not him. Still, if this gave him a chance to find the demon who'd targeted his nephew, it might be worth the risk. After all, what harm could a potion like this really cause?

000

2004

Chris Halliwell couldn't remember how long it had been since he'd had a day just to relax and have fun. If he had to guess, it probably would have been when he was eight and Wyatt was ten and their mother had taken them to Disney Land. It was one of the few memories he had from his childhood where there were no demons, no magic and Wyatt had actually seemed like a normal kid instead of his usual brooding, troubled self. His older brother had been so happy that day. He'd excitedly drug Chris from one ride to the next while their mother claimed she had enough adventure in her life without roller coasters. It was just the two of them screaming and laughing and being kids. Their mom had actually purchased one of those cheesy souvenir photos from one of the rollercoasters. He and Wyatt had been sitting up front, and it was a good shot. Chris had his hands up in the air screaming enthusiastically, but Wyatt had just looked so . . . content. It was the only photo they had of him after age six with a smile on his face.

Per Lucky's request, the day had started out with homemade breakfast burritos, which Chris had never heard of before, but after one bite, loved. Scrambled eggs, tons of cheese, bacon and salsa in a nice warm tortilla. Obviously Casey had made them, Chris being fairly useless in the kitchen, but the three of them had eaten together, and it had been so . . . normal. It was almost like they had been a family for ages, and it was just any regular day in their lives.

After breakfast, Lucky had decided he wanted to spend the day at the beach, have junk food at a concession stand and end the day by seeing a movie. It was supposed to be an unseasonably warm day today, so it actually sounded like the perfect plan. Chris took care of conjuring himself and Lucky some swim shorts, refuting his friend's comment about personal gain by informing her in the grand scheme of things, conjuring some clothes while on a mission to save the entire fate of the world was probably not going to bring the wrath of anyone down on him. She looked unconvinced but dropped it, leaving while muttering something about going to dig through Phoebe's closet again.

Deciding to try to make the day as normal as possible, Chris had borrowed his mother's jeep along with more than enough money to pay for anything they might need. During the ride, they'd played car games, which Lucky inevitably would cheat at causing both his parents to laugh and shake their heads while telling him to play by the rules. Casey and Lucky also sang a bit, clearly something they did often together. Chris couldn't hold a tune himself, but his passengers both had great voices, and he enjoyed listening to the mother son bonding. He didn't remember Casey ever having sung in his timeline. She had beautiful voice.

They reached the beach by late morning, and Lucky's whole face had lit up the moment they arrived. He quickly undid his seatbelt and leapt from the vehicle, immediately running toward the surf. Chris gave chase, catching the boy a few feet from the water's edge and lifting him up, swinging him around a few times before bringing him down into the shallow part of water. Lucky was laughing so hard he could barely breathe, and Chris' whole day was made in that moment.

Chris and Lucky had been playing in the water for over an hour, splashing around and hitting a beach ball back and forth. Finally, the little boy had seen some other kids building a large sand castle and asked if he could go help, and his father had agreed so long as Lucky stayed within sight. As Lucky tore off to help with the sandcastle, Chris jogged to where Casey was lying on a towel reading a book and flopped down next to her on the towel she'd already laid out for him.

She glanced over at him grinning. "How's it swinging, Peter Parker?"

He shot her a look. "A Spiderman reference? Really? Cute. Thanks."

"Couldn't resist."

Chris rolled onto his back, putting one arm behind his head and the other over his eyes. He was breathing a bit heavily. He peeked at Casey from under one arm asking, "Does he ever run out of energy?"

Her smile widened. "Nope."

"Okay, just checking."

After resting a bit, Chris rolled onto his stomach and frowned as he noticed his friend was still wearing her street clothes – a tight white t-shirt and matching white jeans she'd borrowed from his aunt. "Aren't you hot?"

She shrugged, still absorbed her book. "It's okay."

"Didn't Phoebe have a swimsuit for you?"

"It was a two piece."

"And?" Chris drew out, not getting her point.

Casey rolled her eyes. "I haven't worn a bikini since Lucky was born, nor do I plan to."

The witchlighter's face grew serious, and he pushed himself up to his knees. He snatched the book from his friend to get her to look up at him. When he had her attention, he said quite seriously, "Case, tell me you don't have body image issues. You're tiny."

"It's not that," she said, grabbing the book back sharply.

"Then what is it?"

She flushed, not able to look at him. Her voice was small as she admitted, "It's the scars."

Chris' brows knitted together in confusion. "Scars?"

The woman's eyes still wouldn't look up, and she shifted uncomfortably. "There were complications with my pregnancy. I had to have an emergency C-section, which also had complications."

Chris remembered Lucky mentioning something about his mother being hurt, and how Lucky had gotten his nickname because no one expected him to survive. He'd forgotten until now. Seeing the pain on Casey's face made his heart give painful pause, and he wished he could have been there for her. He knew his other version probably had been, but still, it wasn't the same. He couldn't help gently asking, "What happened?"

"I had something happen called placental abruption," she said, staring at her feet. "It led to Lucky being anemic and having heart failure. Since he was premature, his lungs were also underdeveloped." Her eyes were moist when she finally looked up at him again. "I almost lost him. The demon who killed my father was targeting me, and he made sure I was alone and couldn't cry out for help. I was bleeding to death in a parking lot, and I could feel Lucky stop moving and I . . ."

As her voice gave out, Chris pulled her tightly against his chest, stroking her hair to calm her. The rage at the demon who'd done it to her, and the guilt over his not having been able to protect her, were warring for dominance inside him. "Oh God, Case. I'm so sorry. You must have been terrified."

She gently pulled back, wiping her eyes and offering him a weak smile as a show she was okay. "It obviously worked out. Lucky is fine. I'm fine. It's just . . . hard to think about, and seeing that ugly scar just always reminds me."

When her eyes dropped down in shame, the anger won out. He lifted her chin and forced her to look at him. He locked his gaze on hers and said firmly, "You have nothing to be ashamed of. Scars are a sign of survival. It means you went through something difficult – in your case traumatic and life threatening - and came out the other side. Your scar means you fought for yourself and for Lucky and won."

"I never thought of it that way," Casey admitted. A true smile formed as she said softly, "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

His friend rose to her feet and with a deep breath, pulled her t-shirt over her head and slipped out of the jeans. She looked down at her abdomen noting the long red scar peeking out from the top of her swimsuit bottom and wrinkled her nose before looking up at him. "It's still pretty ugly."

Chris rose to his feet, taking in the sight of her. She wore the bikini very well. The bright colors accented her tan skin, and the cut of the suit put her curvy figure on full display. He had to admit it was having a distinct effect on his blood pressure. He swallowed thickly, his voice a bit husky as he argued, "I don't see anything ugly."

"Really?" she questioned, too busy scrutinizing the mark to notice the look in his eyes.

Chris caught Lucky keeping a watchful eye on them over from the group of kids making the sandcastle. He'd apparently been staring at them for a while and was getting ideas. The little boy grinned mischievously before flicking a finger at his mother, who suddenly tripped standing still, and Chris had to reach out to catch her before she fell, winding up with her in his arms, their faces very close together.

Apparently, Lucky wanted his parents together, Chris realized. Looking down at Casey, her face lightly flushed from surprise, he had to admit, he wasn't totally against the idea himself. He'd only gotten her back in his life a few days ago, but all the old feelings he'd had for her had sprung to life once more and were growing all the time. It was unnerving and wonderful all at once. He never thought he could come even remotely close to feeling this way again after he lost Bianca, and if it were anyone else, he probably couldn't. She wasn't just anyone though. She was his best friend, his first love, and now the mother of his son. How could he not start falling for her all over again?

"Nice save," Casey commented.

Chris' eyes slipped from her soft brown eyes down to her lips. They were an alluring coral color. They looked like they would be very soft, and he wondered if they still tasted like watermelon.

"Uh, you can let me go now," Casey said, a nervous smile on her face.

Chris found himself coloring and immediately unwrapped his arms from around her. He ran a hand through his hair, letting out a breath to dispel the last of the lust he'd just let come over him. "Sorry."

From the corner of his eye, he caught Lucky fold his arms and frown in disappointment. He turned to shoot the child a disapproving look. The boy looked completely unremorseful, and Chris couldn't help but smile, roll his eyes and shake his head. The kid really was him in miniature.

Bored with the lack of progress on the sandcastle Lucky came running over. Chris hadn't caught what Lucky said before the little boy had his hand and was pulling both he and Casey by the hands to the water.

As they reached the edge, Casey shook her head, "Oh no. My hair will frizz for days."

"Come on, Momma," Lucky whined. "You gotta get wet. It's the best part."

"Yeah, Case," Chris agreed, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

She recognized the twinkle in his gaze and started to quickly back away, but she wasn't fast enough, and he caught her by the waist. She started yelling at him to put her down between laughs, struggling uselessly against his hold. Once he'd drug her far enough into the water, he finally told her 'okay' and tossed her in.

When Casey came up from under the water she was on him in a flash, jumping on his shoulders and shoving him under water. She released him with a laugh, getting a high five from Lucky. When Chris popped up, he spotted the other two laughing and splashed them both with water. A water fight thus ensued between the three. They played in the water together for another hour, laughing and splashing and making memories. Chris had to admit, he was having a blast. It'd been a long time since he'd felt like he had a family, and it was growing addictive.

Finally, Lucky informed them he was getting hungry, so they left the water and headed to the snack shack for burgers, fries and shakes. When they were done eating, they changed into dry clothes, packed up the car and headed back to the city. Lucky was asleep in about fifteen minutes.

Looking back at his sleeping son in the rearview mirror, Chris commented. "He's such a great kid."

"Glad you think so," Casey commented teasingly.

"I'm serious. We did good considering we were just kids when we had him." He slid her a sideways glance, grinning. "Pretty ironic considering in my timeline we once thought kissing was insane."

She chuckled. "In my timeline, there was actually the great kissing experiment of 2017."

"On your porch?" Chris questioned, clearly surprised.

She turned to look at him, her eyes wide. "Wait. That happened in your time too?"

"Yeah," he said a smile forming. "I told you I wanted to see what the big deal was and convinced you to try it with me. Then, I kissed you on your porch." He colored a bit. "Honestly, I just wanted an excuse to kiss you without you knowing I had a crush on you."

Casey leaned her head back against the headrest, a contemplative look on her face. "Huh. I wonder if my Chris did the same thing. I always assumed if I said no he would have just found another girl for his experiment."

"No," Chris answered, sliding an intense look in her direction. "I wouldn't have. It had to be you."

He didn't fail to notice her blush and turn to look out the window.

By the time they reached the city, it was nearly time for the movie in the park to start, so Chris had driven straight there. Lucky hadn't slept long and was excitedly jabbering about how he couldn't believe he was actually going to see Shrek 2 on a big screen, and how weird it was going to be to watch such an old movie. The little boy wondered how much different the images would look compared to what he was used to seeing on the more advanced screens of the future.

Chris parked the car a few blocks away and automatically took Lucky's hand to guide him to a spot where they could watch the movie. It came so naturally to want to make sure the little boy was safe. It was a big, busy area, and he didn't want him getting lost or taken or attacked by a demon. He vaguely noticed Casey grab a big blanket from the back seat and follow behind them with a small smile at the sight of Lucky's hand in his own.

Guiding their little family to a spot he remembered from his childhood, Chris asked, "This okay?"

Casey flipped out the blanket and plopped down in response. She patted the spot next to her and Lucky followed suit.

"So snacks?" Chris asked, his eyes landing on Lucky first.

"Extra buttery popcorn," he excitedly requested. After a moment he added, "Ooh! And the little chocolate circles with white sprinkles."

Chris frowned having no idea what the kid was referring to. He shot a look to Casey who merely shrugged, not quite sure either. "Uh, okay. I'll figure it out." He looked back to Casey, "And you?"

"Skittles," she said with a Chesire Cat grin. When he didn't react, she rolled her eyes at herself. "Sorry. Inside joke."

Chris felt a pang of jealousy, which was odd since he was pretty sure she was talking about his other self. Still, he wanted to have inside jokes with her. He wanted to know everything about their history, and it was getting frustrating not knowing. He folded his arms over his chest, half-demanding, "So tell me."

She opened her mouth, probably to comment on his attitude, but after a minute seemed to change her mind. Her face softened and she replied, "When I was pregnant with Lucky, I used to crave Skittles something awful. We had a deal during the pregnancy I'd try to curb my sweet tooth, but I was still constantly sneaking Skittles behind your back. It drove you crazy. There was also the great Skittles Debate."

"Skittles debate?" he asked, an amused grin forming.

"Mhmm. Firstly, you made fun of me because I sort them by color and have to make sure the numbers stay even when I eat."

Chris frowned. "Why would I make fun of you for that? You don't want to run out of one of the flavors right away."

The woman's mouth fell open, her eyes wide as her eyebrows shot up. "Wait one minute. You think they taste different?"

"Uh, yeah. Why?"

Lucky started laughing, long used to this conversation and knowing exactly what his mother was thinking.

"That lying little . . ." Casey muttered. She shook her head, completely floored. "All these years, and he was just being _obstinate_. I couldn't be right, ooooh noooo."

Chris, still not totally sure what was going on, decided to move on. "So, did you really want some or. . .?"

Casey was still fuming, so Lucky answered, "Yeah, she does, but you gotta hurry,Dad, cause the movie is gonna start soon. You can't miss it."

Chris smiled at the enthusiasm and hurried off to the concession stand. The line was annoyingly long, and it took him almost twenty minutes before he got back to the blanket. The movie was just clicking to life on the big screen as he took a seat next to Casey, handing out the treats he'd acquired.

He didn't watch much of the movie. He'd seen it as kid himself, and vaguely remembered the plot. It was funny, but he couldn't concentrate. Sometimes he would find his mind wandering to which demon or cult to check out tomorrow. He would force the thoughts out. Today was for Lucky. He wouldn't think about his mission today. In effort to stop obsessing about Wyatt and the two futures he held in his hands, he would find himself watching Lucky, who would laugh out loud at the jokes when he wasn't shoving fistfuls of popcorn in his mouth. The boy was loving this, and Chris hoped it had made up for how he'd treated his son the other day.

When he wasn't watching his son enjoying the show, he found his eyes drifting over to the boy's mother. She had organized her Skittles and was daintily popping them into her mouth one at a time, making sure the little piles of different colors stayed even as long as she could. He found the quirk endearing.

A little more than halfway through the movie, Chris noticed Casey was rubbing her arms clearly getting a bit chilled. Without hesitating, he took off his hooded sweatshirt and placed it over her shoulders. His breath grew a bit shallow as his fingers skimmed her skin, smooth and soft and still a bit warm. He was suddenly acutely aware of just how long it had been since he'd caressed anyone. He was sure his face was red as warm as it was starting to feel.

She didn't seem to notice, her eyes on the movie. She just pulled the sweatshirt on the rest of the way, smiling with a whispered, " _Gracias_."

From that moment on, Chris' thoughts were definitely not on the movie or his mission. His mind became incredibly one-track. He was sure he was staring, but he couldn't seem to stop. She was leaning back on her hands, head tilted as she watched the show, seemingly oblivious to his attention. Her hair had gone wildly wavy after getting wet, and it looked exactly as he remembered it now. The moon had come out and the pale light was making her skin glow. He found himself following the lines of her body, his throat getting thick and a warmth spreading through him. He wanted her, and he wasn't sure what to do about it.

The movie was almost over, and Lucky, despite having taken a cat nap in the car, had fallen asleep, obviously worn out from the long, active day. Casey noticed first and nudged Chris, gesturing with her head toward their son. "Guess he can run out of energy."

She was looking at him, amused. It made her brown eyes twinkle in the moonlight, and Chris found any will power he may have had disappear. He slipped a hand through her hair to the back of her neck, gently pulling her forward. He lightly brushed his lips over hers, noting with satisfaction how he'd been right, and her lips were incredibly soft and had the distinct watermelon flavor he remembered. He deepened the kiss, feeling a bolt of pleasure run through him.

Casey's hands suddenly pushed at his chest, and she pulled away, her eyes wide with dismay, and if he looked deeply enough, a bit of pain. She shook her head as she struggled to form words. Finally, her voice came out stuttered but firm. "Never do that to me again."

Before he could say a word, she was on her feet hurrying away from him. He was pretty sure he saw her eyes glistening, and his stomach knotted painfully. He put his elbows on his knees, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "Shit. What did I just do?"

A pair of invisible brown eyes watched the display with keen interest, a plan slowly forming in the man's mind. He could use this to his advantage. Distracting the meddlesome time traveler was key to his success. He just needed to give the young woman a push, and he knew just the demon to help him.

It was time to find a way to get Barbas out of hell.

TBC . . .


	11. Things We Lost in the Fire

Firstly, thank you sooo much to Anthony, sise87, and Callisto Nicol. You guys are spoiling my review addicted muse :) Therefore, another update!

Chapter 11

2026

Wyatt Halliwell orbed into his Aunt Paige's house bright and early the morning after his encounter with the mystery demon. He didn't want to burden his parents with what had happened. They had enough to deal with worrying about Chris and Lucky. Which is why instead of turning to his parents like he normally would have, he'd called the only other two people who had ever obsessed over magic as much as his little brother did. If anyone could figure out what the potion did, it would be Paige and Prue.

His Aunts were chatting about something at the kitchen table. He distinctly heard his Aunt Paige say something about Phoebe using premonitions to speed date and his aunt Prue mutter, "And she wondered why I never thought she'd grow up."

"Not nice insulting Aunt Pheebs when she's not even here to defend herself," Wyatt lightly chided.

Paige waved him off, addressing Prue, "Oh, don't listen to him. Phoebe spoiled him rotten as a kid. She'll always be his favorite."

The young man put on his most charming smile. "Not true. I love all my aunts equally."

Prue grinned, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms over her chest. "Gee, do you think he wants something, Paige?"

"Mhmm," Paige concurred, her soft brown eyes narrowed at her nephew. "It's the only reason he'd get us up this early. He knows how I am before I've had my coffee."

"Beautiful and wise?" Wyatt tried.

"Ha!" Paige responded. "Now, I know it's bad."

Prue regarded her oldest nephew with concern, her eyes squinting slightly. "What is it?"

Wyatt let out a deep breath and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, handing it to Prue. As his Aunt read over the potion and then passed the paper to Paige, Wyatt explained, "I was approached by a demon last night at P3. She said she had information on who came after Lucky. I haven't had any luck finding anything, but she swore she could take me right to him. If I make her this potion . . . blessed with my blood."

"Uh-huh," Prue shook her head. "No way. You do not work with demons, Wyatt. Not ever."

Paige was frowning as she looked at the paper. "This is some seriously powerful stuff. I've only seen half of these ingredients before. An ex of mine had a pretty extensive supply of rare magical supplies, and I'm not even sure he had all of this."

"Do you know what it does?" Wyatt asked.

"Looks like it's got ingredients for a really intense love potion." She handed it back to Prue pointing, "What would these three do?"

Prue's brow furrowed as she analyzed the items Paige was questioning. "Uh, okay, weird. Looks like these are spiritual ingredients. They'd be used in necromancy or summoning rituals." She frowned up at Wyatt. "Are they trying to bring someone back from the dead?"

Paige wrinkled her nose. "Eeew. Necrophilia demon."

Prue and Wyatt both wore matching disgusted faces. The young man shook his head, recovering first, remembering what the strange woman had said. "She mentioned love through lifetimes. Could that have anything to do with the summoning ingredients?"

"Maybe," Prue conceded. "These could possibly summon a spirit from a past life. We are still sort of connected to those versions of ourselves. Phoebe actually got affected by one of hers once."

"Why would a demon want this?" Paige wondered. "It's not like they can love."

"They can think they're in love," Prue countered. "Remember Cole."

"Cole was half-human," Paige argued. She looked at Wyatt, "What do you know about this demon?"

Wyatt shrugged. "I don't know much. She said she wasn't a demon, but she shimmered. She was extremely confident and moved like she'd had training –graceful and always on guard. She claimed the potion was for a buyer." He frowned, tilting his head, "What would be the repercussions if I did make it? What could they really do with it?"

"I can't really think of anything dangerous really," Paige conceded. "The love potion part of it looks like it would only work if there was actual love between the two who drank it. Doesn't create love just binds it."

"You can never trust a demon," Prue repeated. "They can twist anything – even love. No way should you make it. We'll find the demon on our own."

Wyatt looked to Paige. "What do you think?"

"She said she wasn't a demon, but she shimmered?" Paige questioned, something tickling the back of her mind.

"Yeah."

Paige bit her lip, her mind working over something. After a moment she asked, "Did she have a mark on her arm?"

Wyatt frowned, trying to remember. Had he seen anything? It'd been dark in the club, but maybe, he'd caught sight of something. He replayed the events of last night in his mind. Eventually he answered, "I wasn't really focusing on her arms." As his aunts quirked their eyebrows at him, the mighty Twice Blessed blushed. "Not that I was looking at her other parts. I just. . ." He sighed. "You two are terrible."

"What did she look like?" Prue asked, still smiling at how innocent he could be at times.

The young man let out a breath. "Well, she actually sort of looked like Casey but harder somehow. Her face was leaner and more pointed. She was also taller and broader and a bit, um, voluptuous?"

"Voluptuous?" Prue teased. "I thought you weren't looking?"

"I'm a good guy - not blind."

Paige meanwhile had realized what her feeling was leading her to realizing. "Aw, hell."

"What?" Prue and Wyatt both asked.

The younger sister pulled a face. "She's after Chris."

"Who's after Chris?" Wyatt asked, instantly worried.

"His former fiancée," Paige grumbled.

Wyatt blinked dumbly. "You think that was Bianca? Why? How would she even know to miss him? They've never met in this life."

"I don't know," Paige replied, her eyes darting to the potion, "but my guess is somehow she remembers the other timeline, and she wants Chris back. At any cost."

000

Leo's advice to Molly about dealing with Bianca as a charge had been to try not to focus on the woman they had known. She wouldn't remember her old life, and it would be unfair to judge her by it. He'd also recommended relating to her as a person rather than as a witch, which was how Molly found herself entering Bianca's workplace, Phoenix Fire Dojo.

A group of adolescents were in two long lines facing toward a woman dressed in a black tank top and loose fitting black cotton pants. She was yelling different words to them in Japanese. Molly found she could somewhat understand the commands if she concentrated hard enough. Though, it was hard to focus on the words when they resulted in such amazing maneuvers from the students.

The teacher finally bowed, receiving a uniformed bow from her class in return. She smiled at them, clearly proud. "Great work today. You've all made remarkable progress. I'll see you again Thursday."

Once the students had all grabbed their belongings and left, the instructor turned toward Molly, and the whitelighter felt her stomach twist painfully. Bianca was stunning. The woman easily could have passed for a model – perfect olive skin, big brown eyes and a body for Victoria's Secret. This was Chris' former fiancée? Molly couldn't help but think Chris had seriously settled in this life.

"Can I help you?" Bianca asked stopping in front of her and folding her arms.

Molly was still struggling with a sudden flare up of her old self-confidence issues and didn't respond immediately, earning a suspicious frown from her charge. She forced her way through the insecurity and offered brightly, "Yes, sorry, yes. I was actually interested in signing up for some self-defense courses. I heard great things about your dojo, so I thought I'd come check it out."

Bianca's eyes raked over her appraisingly. "You want to take self-defense?"

The whitelighter shifted nervously but kept forcing the smile. "Right. Can't be too careful. Single gal in the city and all."

The witch's brown eyes shifted to the ring on Molly's finger then back up to her face. She quirked a brow in question but said nothing.

"Oh, this?" Molly raised her left hand, gesturing to her engagement ring. "Just a fake. So strange men leave me alone. I just hate all the cheesy come-ons.

"Have that problem a lot do you?" Bianca drawled, eyeing Molly up and down again.

Molly felt her cheeks burn. Her competition didn't even think she was capable of attracting _any_ men. Great – it wasn't as if she didn't have body image issues already. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to quiet the taunting voices who had called her two-ton Molly in high school. She wasn't that insecure girl anymore. She was a powerful source of good who helped fight evil every day. She had an incredibly attractive fiancée who loved her like crazy. Except Chris was gone, and he was probably going to change, and he very well may dump her for the walking sex symbol standing in front of her.

"Listen," Bianca began, her voice low, "I'm going to give you a piece of advice . . . ?" She gestured vaguely at Molly.

"Molly," the whitelighter supplied.

Brown eyes rolled to the side. "Of course it would be."

Molly blinked, taken back. What was wrong with her name?

"Anyway, _Molly_ ," Bianca picked up, moving to stand intimidatingly close to the whitelighter, "the advice is this: Go back to your bosses and tell them I'm not interested in playing their sadistic little game. They know damn well what they've done to me, and I would rather die than lift one finger to help them out of the mess they've made."

Molly swallowed, instinctively taking a step back. "Bosses?"

The other woman set her jaw, irritated. "Please. You're an even more pathetic liar than the last whitelighter they sent me."

"I understand the Elders can be . . . frustrating," Molly tried. "Believe me. They've done some pretty terrible things to me and the people I love, but in the end, it did always turn out for the best."

"How nice for you," she replied sarcastically.

Molly let out a breath, following the other woman as she turned and started walking away. "Bianca, please, give me a chance. Maybe if you tell me what happened, I could help?"

Brown eyes shot daggers in her direction stopping Molly in her tracks. The witch then put her hands on her hips. "Have I in some way given you _any_ impression I'm interested in being your friend? Or that I want _any_ thing to do with you at all?"

The whitelighter shrunk a bit, shaking her head.

"No," Bianca confirmed. "I haven't because I don't. In fact, none of your kind are welcome here. Get out."

"Bianca-"

Bianca powered up an energy ball letting it hover above her hand. "Did I stutter?"

As Molly disappeared in a swirl of orb lights, she would have sworn she heard Bianca mutter, "Damn it, Merlin."

000

2004

Casey had been avoiding Chris for over a week now. Unless Lucky was playing mini-chaperone, she hadn't interacted with her friend at all. She was mortified by what had happened between them at the park. She hadn't seen it coming. The idea of Chris being attracted to her, of wanting her, hadn't crossed her mind. He was in love with Molly. He'd always been in love with Molly.

The young witch shut the Book of Shadows with more force than needed and leaned her head back against the couch in the attic. She'd been trying to look up ideas for how to get back to the changed future, but she couldn't concentrate. She just kept replaying the damn kiss over and over on a torturous loop. The guilt was making her stomach burn and her chest feel tight. She should have told Chris about Wyatt. It just hadn't seemed relevant, and he'd been so paranoid about his brother when she'd first arrived she was worried how he'd take the news she was in love with him. She knew she had no choice but to tell Chris now, but she couldn't say she was looking forward to the conversation.

The sound of orbs jerked her from her thoughts and she sucked in a breath, holding it until Leo formed from the swirling lights. She exhaled with a small smile. "Leo. Hi."

"Hi," Leo replied quickly, his face etched with worry. "I don't have a lot of time to explain, but Paige and Phoebe are in a lot of trouble right now. They've been summoned before a group known as the Tribunal for trial on the grounds of exposing magic, and I have to prove they're being set up by Barbas."

" _The_ Barbas?" Casey questioned going pale. She'd heard stories of him growing up. He was the Halliwell family's greatest nemesis. "How can I help?"

The Elder looked uncomfortable, not quite meeting her gaze. "I was hoping that you would call Chris and get him to use his demonic connections. I'd ask Piper to call him, but she's safe at Magic School, and I don't want to worry her."

"Why don't you ask him?" Casey wondered. When the man winced, she remembered. This version of Chris hated him. "Right." She took a breath before calling, "Chris?"

Light blue and white lights twisted into the attic, Chris' voice floating from within them. "Does this mean you're finally done avoiding . . ." As Chris fully formed and saw Leo standing next to Casey, his face fell, and he finished, ". . . me."

Leo frowned, looking between them and noticing the obvious tension. "Uh, something going on with you two?"

"No," they answered at the same time a bit too quickly and emphatically.

The Elder's eyebrows shot up. "I see." Deciding to worry about whatever happened between Chris and Casey later, Leo focused on his son. "The girls are in trouble. I need your help."

Chris slid an upset look to Casey, clearly irritated she'd called on his father's behalf.

"I promised Piper I would take care of the club while she's stuck at Magic School," Casey said, heading for the door. "Lucky is going to be with Piper tonight, so you don't have to worry about us."

Chris rolled his eyes, catching her arm as she tried to bolt. "Case, come on. We need to talk sometime."

She smiled sadly. "Yeah, we do." She let out breath. "Tell you what, if you help your dad with this, we'll talk. Depending on when you get done, you can meet me at P3 later. I'll be there till close."

"Fine, but I'm holding you to it."

000

2004

Chris orbed into P3 to find Casey wiping down the bar. Judging by the mess still to clean up, the place must have been incredibly busy tonight. He noticed a table with dirty glasses and snagged the cups with one hand moving over to place them on the bar in front of where Casey had been cleaning. He looked down at her, smiling weakly. "Hey."

"How did it go?" she asked, not meeting his gaze.

"Leo is impossible to work with," Chris grumbled. "He thinks he knows everything, and he refuses to listen. He's just so incredibly arrogant and stubborn and-" He noticed her smiling widely and glared at her. "-You think we're the same. No. No way. I'm not like that."

She shot him a look. "Mhmm." When he just continued to glare at her, she sighed and changed the subject. "Everything work out with the sisters?"

The witchlighter leaned against the bar, cocking his head to the side. "Yes and no. We were able to prove Barbas was using phantasms to manipulate the situation, but Phoebe still lost her powers."

Mid-swipe, Casey's hand paused, the rag dangling in the air. She turned in shock to finally face him. "What?"

"Yeah. The tribunal decided she'd been abusing her powers, so they took them away." He corrected, "Well, her active powers anyway."

" _Dios mio_."

"Oh, it gets better," Chris said, folding his arms over his chest. "They also decided Barbas technically won his case, so he got a get-out-of-hell-free card."

"Oh. My. God."

"Yeah, pretty much." He let out a breath. "I guess it could have been worse. They all could have lost their powers. They really do use a lot of personal gain back here. It's no wonder Wyatt grew up thinking he could use his magic for whatever he wanted."

Casey quickly ducked her head, returning back to her work.

"Not much we can do about Phoebe or Barbas right now." He moistened his lips, a bit nervous as he wearily asked, "So, can we, please, talk about what happened?"

Her face was full of guilt as she softly started, "It's all my fault. I should have told you right away, but it didn't seem relevant, and I wasn't sure what you'd think when you found out about him."

Chris felt his stomach drop. "Him." His green eyes grew steely. "You're seeing someone in the future."

"Yeah."

"Is it serious?"

She kept eye contact answering solemnly, "Very."

Chris set his jaw. He felt himself starting to burn with jealousy, and while he knew his counterpart in her future was engaged to someone else, he couldn't seem to stop the rising frustration and anger at the news. He glanced down at her hand then back up to her face. "So where's the ring?"

Casey did a double take. "What?"

He gave a little shrug, playing nonchalant. "If it's so serious, I figure he would have proposed to you already, but I don't see a ring. Don't see a line where one would be either."

"We're not engaged," she answered, rolling her eyes and moving to pick up a few empty beer bottles from a nearby table.

"So he's got commitment issues."

Casey threw the empty bottles into the bin rather than dropping them. She turned to shoot her friend a frustrated look. "No. I'm sure he'd love to get married, but I'm not the marrying kind, okay?"

Chris shoved his hands in his pockets, nodding slowly. "See, sounds to me like you don't want to marry _him_. What's wrong? Too clingy? Needy? Boring? Bad in bed?"

" _Qué demonios te pasa_?" she snapped, her face getting red. "Why are you being like this?"

Chris pushed off from against the bar walking backwards to keep eye contact with her. His cool façade firmly in place. "What? I'm just curious. I mean, if it's really as serious as you claim, he'll be involved in Lucky's life, which means I should know what the guy is like. So tell me about this great love of yours."

She knew she was being baited. She knew she should have just told him the conversation was over, but she was angry, and unfortunately, too much like Chris to stop now. She folded her arms, throwing a fake smile on her face. "Well, let's see, he's cute, incredibly kind, loyal and protective-"

"-You realize you're describing a Labrador, right?" Chris cut in snidely.

Casey was about to forcibly defend Wyatt, but Chris had moved to crowd her against the bar, looking down at her with such an intensity to his currently dark green eyes her breath caught, and she couldn't speak.

His voice was husky as he spoke into her ear. "Tell me this: Does he make your heart beat faster? Your stomach twist and turn and your skin grow hot while you shiver in expectation of his touch? Does the very thought of this guy make you feel like you're spinning into infinity?"

Casey felt a rush of warmth run through her at his proximity. Her breathing became quick and shallow, her heart racing at the feel of his breath on her ear, saying those words to her. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to deny the flutter forming in the pit of her stomach. She shook her head. "No. That's not. . .that's not love." She opened her eyes, shooting him a reproachful glare. "That's just passion."

His brows creased slightly. "You don't think it can be both?"

She slipped away from him, moving into the open space. She was worked up now, not thinking clearly, letting the words just flow out. "No. Passion dies. It's just a flame that burns you and then fades out. Love is forever. It's stable and steady and comfortable."

Chris leaned back against the bar, arms folded again, watching her with sad eyes. His voice was quiet as he asked, "I burned you, didn't I?"

She did a double take, thrown by the question. "What?"

"Other me," he clarified. "He really did a number on you."

Her hands clenched at her sides, her face full of fury. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about, so just drop it."

She tried to flee the conversation, but he was faster, catching her arms and forcing her to look at him. "No. I will not drop it. What did he do to you to make you think passion is some dirty, horrible thing? Did he cheat on you?"

"No," she responded hotly, struggling against his hold. "Now, let me go."

He shook his head, his grip firm. "No. What did he do, Case? I kissed you, and you weren't just embarrassed or angry. You were hurt. Why?" He shook her lightly, "What did he do to break you?"

Finally, she exploded, "He didn't want me!"

Chris released her, taking a step back in shock. "What?"

Tears were slipping down her face as she looked away in shame. She was hugging herself, looking so young and so small. She swallowed thickly. "I don't want to talk about this."

"You need to," he urged, gently. "I can't imagine ever being someone who could hurt you like this, so I need you to explain to me what happened. Please."

She still refused to look at him, her eyes on her feet. "We were only together for a few months before my mom moved us to Puerto Rico for her job. Even then we weren't really together per se. More like . .." She blushed deeply. ". . . fooling around."

Chris' brows rose and he looked horrified. "He used you as a bed buddy?"

The young woman let out a breath, moving to sit at the bar. She still wouldn't look at him. "It's complicated. When we first got together, I'd just found my boyfriend in bed with someone else. He found me, and we went to talk, and he'd been drinking since he was upset I was at the party with Sam in the first place-"

"-Wait, Sam? The football player?" Chris questioned. "The one who _hated_ me?"

Casey smiled sadly, "I wanted to piss you off after I found you kissing Tori under the bleachers." She shrugged lightly. "I didn't expect to fall for the cure."

"Tori?" Chris frowned, trying to remember. "Your next door neighbor? The flighty one? Does other me have _no_ taste?"

Casey wasn't really listening, lost in memory. She started swirling her finger through a water ring on the bar top. "Anyway, you were saying all these perfect things to me, and I realized you liked me as more than a friend, and I had pretty much been in love with you for as long as I could remember so . . . we slept together. I was actually your first." She let a fond smile form. "For two months or so, we were really happy. We didn't label it, but I thought we were together. I thought you . . ." she drifted off, not able to finish the thought.

"What went wrong?"

"I didn't know this at the time, but he thought he was just the rebound guy," she answered. "When my family moved out of the country, he decided to cut me out before I realized I didn't want him. No calls. Barely any emails. Never visited me once. It was like," her voice cracked a bit, "like I was nothing to him."

"What a coward," Chris remarked bitterly. "How could he do that?"

Casey ignored his questions, continuing the story. "Anyway, when _Papi_ died, we moved back to San Francisco, but it was almost a year later, and by then, he was madly in love with Molly. I liked Molly from the start. I was happy you found someone. She's good for you. It's just . . . I was still in love with him."

"Did you tell him?"

She let out a breath, pushing back her hair. "Uh, yeah, eventually, but it didn't matter. He loved Molly. Then she died. Sort of."

Casey swiveled on the stool to look over at him. "What you want to know about happened the day of her funeral. He was devastated and broken, and I followed him here to make sure he didn't drink himself to an ER. We fought then we drank and then we just talked and laughed like we used to before I had left. It was nice. Anyway, I was sitting right here," she pointed to the section of bar top to their right, "laughing about something. I don't even remember what. I lost my balance and was falling backward, and he caught me by the waist." Her eyes were growing misty, her voice thick as she hugged herself again. "He kissed me. I stopped it. I tried to remind him Molly was technically out there somewhere, but he wasn't himself. I think just hearing her name threw him over the edge."

Chris was growing tense as he listened, fear clutching his heart. "Please, tell me he didn't force-"

The small woman spun around, shaking her head fiercely. "-God no! No. It's just . . ." She dropped her head, shame coloring her face again. "He kissed me again, and I was wearing a black dress for the funeral, and his hand slid up my skirt and I just . . . I couldn't fight it anymore. I didn't want to." She turned to look at the spot she'd pointed to earlier, her eyes watery and far away. "It was all the things you described, and for a minute, I was able to forget about my father and about the demon after me, and about everything and just be happy."

"Wait . . . this was the night Lucky was conceived wasn't it? You said that happened at P3."

She smiled softly. "Best thing to come out of that horrible night."

Chris felt his stomach twist, his chest tighten. "What did he do?"

"I was tipsy and happy and I very stupidly decided to tell him I loved him." She bit her lip as she bitterly finished, "To which he replied, I love you too, Molly."

Chris closed his eyes completely disgusted with essentially himself. When he opened them to look at her, Casey was staring at the bar top again, lost in the painful memory. He shook his head, trying to think of something to say. Something to make it better, but he couldn't find anything.

"I made sure you got home okay then I went out in the rain to sober up," she continued. "Got drenched, then sat in your father's truck and sobbed until I couldn't cry anymore." She slid her brown eyes to his downcast face. "You knew I loved you, and you used me to heal your all mighty pain before calling me by your girlfriend's name."

He winced.

Her face grew harsh as she looked at him, all the pent up fury she'd been holding in for Lucky's sake all this time came out. "You wonder why I think unbridled passion is so awful, well, that's your answer. You taught me that lesson. You shattered me that night, Chris."

"Case, I-"

"-I'm not done," she snapped, brown eyes flashing. "The man you criticized earlier was the one to put the pieces back together. He is an amazing man, and I owe my being here whole, strong and happy entirely to him. He fixed what you broke."

Chris' head dropped, his eyes focused on his shoes. He had no words. He didn't think anything he could say would help right now.

"If you care about me," Casey continued, "leave me alone. We can be friends and co-parents but anything else is off limits, do you hear me?"

He nodded, his face etched in sadness and regret. "Yeah. I hear you." He wet his lips before suddenly lifting his green eyes to lock on her brown. "Just . . . he's not me. The one who hurt you – he's not me, Casey. I would _never_ hurt you. He didn't appreciate what he had, but I know what it's like to lose you."

She nodded but wouldn't look at him again, trying to hide her tears. "I think you should go."

Chris lightly wiped the tears from her face with this thumb before disappearing in a swirl of orb lights, abiding by her wishes.

Casey closed her eyes, taking a deep, shuddered breath before returning to her work. As she disappeared to the back to check on inventory, a figure who had invisibly watched their exchange shimmered to visibility, sitting on one of the barstools.

The silver haired fox lifted his hand, his palm toward his face. "Ve-ry interesting. His greatest fear is to lose his family all over again. Her greatest fear is to succumb to her destiny as Guinevere, breaking poooor Wyatt's heart." He grinned madly. "This will be soooo much fun."

TBC . . .


	12. The First Cut is the Deepest

Oh my goodness my muse feels so special she decided to get hopping on a new chapter right away. She gives special thanks to the anonymous guest reviewer, Anthony and Callisto Nicol for feeding her.

Borrowed a few lines from A Wrong Days Journey into Right

2026

As she orbed into Wyatt's apartment, Molly let out a frustrated yell before immediately starting to pace in front of her future brother–in-law, who didn't even bother looking up from the pot on the stove where he was stirring something. The young whitelighter didn't notice her audience's distraction far too upset over the day's events to even have seen he was busy. She just needed to vent. Badly.

"I hate her," she started. "I know whitelighters are supposed to be calm and peaceful, but that woman is evil. And mean. She's just mean. Did I mention I am pretty sure she's evil? I mean, she threatened me with an energy ball. After insulting me. Okay, so yeah, she's really pretty in an obvious sex-kitten kind of way, but I'm not ugly. I'm not. I'm just German-Irish and curvy in a non-model kind of way. So what if she's got perfect skin and is all busty and tough and mysterious. I'm a good person, damn it. I do not deserve this."

Wyatt removed a pair of ear buds and smiled warmly up at Molly. "Hey. When did you get here?"

Molly glared at him. "You didn't a hear word of that did you?"

"Word of what?" he asked, confused. He glanced down at the ear buds, realizing what had happened. "Oh, sorry. I like to listen to music when I make potions. Helps me relax."

The young woman flopped down on his sofa, putting her head in her hands. "I can't do this. I just can't, Wyatt. How could they do this to me?"

Wyatt pulled his music player from his pocket and tossed it and the ear buds on the counter. He then flipped off the burner and covered his pot with a lid before making his way to sit next to her on the sofa. He put a hand on her shoulder, his brow creased in concern. "Hey, Molly, what's wrong? Talk to me. I promise nothing in my ears right now."

"You know if Chris were here," Molly began with a soft, sad laugh, "he'd say you didn't have anything between them either."

Wyatt chuckled nodding. "Yeah, I guess I did leave myself wide open. He would've definitely jumped on that one. I'm getting sloppy without him here to give me grief."

She bit her lip, her eyes watering, "I miss him so much. I've been trying to stay strong and positive, but I just can't anymore. My heart just _hurts_ , Wyatt. All the time. I feel empty and alone – like my life is just on pause. I'm not really here. I'm just floating through the days. It was sort of fine that way until the Elders decided to turn me into their cosmic punching bag."

"What did they do?"

"Your parents told you all about the other timeline, right?" Off his nod, "Well, did they happen to mention Chris' incredibly sexy former fiancée, Bianca?"

Wyatt's mouth fell open in shock. "You met Bianca too?"

"She's my charge," Molly answered bitterly. She frowned as she fully comprehended what he'd said. "Wait. Too?"

The Twice Blessed pursed his lips, not really wanting to talk about his encounter with the Phoenix Witch. As worried and upset as Molly already seemed to be about the woman, he didn't think hearing how Bianca planned to give Chris a soul-binding potion would help. He darted his eyes to the side, looking sheepish. "Uh, she sort of stopped by P3."

"And . . .?"

He shrugged, playing nonchalant with a bit too much enthusiasm. "Didn't seem so great to me. I thought she was kinda harsh looking. Very demonatrix vibe – totally not Chris' type at all. Really." He made a face which included sticking out his tongue. "Blech."

"What aren't you telling me?"

The witchlighter tried to change the subject. "So . . . the Elders suck. I cannot believe they assigned you Bianca. That's just not right. Do you want me to go talk to them?" He rose from the sofa nervously. "I'll go talk to them. Yeah, I will just go, and I'll give them what's-for. You just stay here, and I'll go, uh, do . . . that."

Just as he started to orb he heard Molly sharply say, "Wyatt Matthew Halliwell _sit_."

Orb lights shifted to the sofa forming one very uncomfortable looking Twice Blessed. He fidgeted nervously as his friend stared him down, one eyebrow arched in question. He finally let out a deep breath. "Okay, so it's come to my attention Bianca may remember the other timeline."

Molly's face went slack and pale. "What?"

The pain and fear in that one word made Wyatt wince. He forced himself to look at her stricken face as he continued gently, "In exchange for information on the demon who went after Lucky, she asked me to make a potion for her . . . one to bind souls through lifetimes. Aunt Paige thinks she wants to give it to Chris to permanently bring back his version from the other timeline."

Molly's eyes drifted over to the stove then back to Wyatt, betrayal and horror in her gaze. "Wyatt . . ."

Realizing what she was thinking, Wyatt threw his hands up in defense. "No. No, no, no, no." He pointed over to the pot. "Just a vanquishing potion - I promise. My charge in Ireland is having some trouble with a Sluagh."

Molly let out a shuttered breath. "Oh, thank god. I mean, not that your charge is in danger, just . . . I'm glad you aren't helping that . . . that _woman_."

"Of course I'm not helping her," Wyatt remarked, a bit insulted. "You are the only sister-in-law I want, okay? She's not getting anywhere near Chris, I promise."

The whitelighter hugged herself, her eyes dropping as she nodded. "Yeah, but unfortunately, you're not the one who gets to make that call. Who knows what Chris will want when he comes back."

"Lucky said you two were married in his future, right?" Off her nod, "Then you have nothing to worry about."

Molly smiled warmly. "Okay. You're right. I heard it straight from the future. I just need to have faith and stay strong and try not to kill my charge."

"Atta, Girl."

The doorbell rang and Wyatt frowned as he moved to open the door. Standing on the other side was a small man a few years younger than Wyatt with short black hair and soft brown eyes mostly hidden behind the thick black frames of his glasses. He was currently scowling at the Twice Blessed.

"Lucy, you got some spainin' to do," the young man scolded in a fake latin accent.

"Kip!" Molly cried out, a huge smile forming on her face as she ran to the door and threw her arms around the newcomer, hugging him tightly.

As the two pulled apart, Kip smiled at her fondly. "Aw, hey, Mols, how's my favorite dead girl?"

"Been better."

"Yeah, I heard about C-squared." He shot a look over at Wyatt, adding bitterly, "Months after the fact. Dude, there's this thing called a phone. You should use it when my two best friends get sucked into the past. A guy has a right to know these things."

Wyatt rolled his eyes. "You're not _my_ friend."

"Ouch," Kip put a hand to his chest. "That hurts. Right here."

Without asking, the young man entered the apartment taking it in. He shook his head, throwing Wyatt a disapproving look. "You know, for the ruler of the magical community, your pad is pretty sad. Not even an island in the kitchen? Casey's got to hate that."

"We're picking out a new place when she gets back, alright?" Wyatt answered, annoyed.

Molly's head whipped around to look at him. "Wait. You and Casey are moving in together?"

He smiled warmly, his blue eyes twinkling. "Yeah. She said yes right before she left after Lucky."

"That's so wonderful, Wyatt. I'm so happy for you guys."

"Thanks."

Kip went into the kitchen and grabbed an apple, taking out a big bite before hopping up onto the counter.

"Hey, I was saving that," Wyatt whined. "Why are you here? Stealing my food?"

"Not that I'm not glad to see you," Molly said, gently nudging Wyatt to be nice, "but how did you find out about Chris and Casey?"

"Jess told me," Kip answered. "Casey called her a few months ago when Chris vanished. Then she had a premonition the other night about Casey and saw her and Lucky with Chris' aunts looking super young and fighting some sort of Elvira looking lady."

"You spoke to Jess?" Molly asked softly. She'd been sad to hear Kip and Jessica had broken up after high school. The news they were speaking again gave her hope for reconciliation.

"We're grown-ups," he answered. Off Wyatt's arched brow and rather loud scoff, he added, "More or less. Just because I'm not with her doesn't mean we can't be friendly. Besides, she knew you might need some support, and she couldn't come what with starring in that off Broadway production – I forget the name. Something artsy and boring."

As Kip reached for another piece of fruit, Wyatt snatched the bowl away. "Would you stop stealing my food? We're not friends. I put up with you for Casey and Chris' sakes, but they're not here right now. How did you even know where my apartment is?"

Kip rolled his eyes. "I stopped at the manor, and your mother, who adores me by the way, told me where to find you. I figured with C-squared gone, Mols would come here. Not to mention, I wanted to give you a piece of my mind for not telling me about this whole big mess. Seriously, someone targets my Godson and no one thinks to clue me in? Evil Jedi can help. Bad ass telepath, remember?"

Wyatt went to block his fridge as Kip hopped off the counter and started heading toward it. He leaned against the door; one foot crossed over the other and arms over his chest, smiling smugly as the telepath pouted.

"In medieval times, you were supposed to be gracious to guests, King Arthur," Kip grumbled.

"I didn't invite you. You're not a guest. You're an intruder."

"Actually, his timing could not be more perfect," Molly said, a plan forming.

Wyatt shot her a quizzical look. "How so? I just went grocery shopping?"

"It's perfect because Bianca doesn't know Kip," she said slowly. "What if we send him to find out for sure what she's really after and why? Or better yet, he can telepath the information we need."

Kip tilted his head to the side, confused. "Who's Bianca?"

The Twice Blessed considered it a moment before having to concede it might actually work. While he could use telepathy himself, it wasn't his strong suite. Kip was definitely far more advanced with the power than he was. "That may not be a terrible idea."

"What idea?" Kip wondered. "Is she the one after Lucky?"

"Then you don't have to make the potion, we find out her real intentions and stop the demon," Molly finished, smiling brightly.

"What demon? What potion? Don't make me telepath you two."

Wyatt put a hand on Kip's shoulder, finally smiling at the younger man. "Kip, I think you may just prove to be useful yet."

The telepath's face fell. "I'm so not going to like this am I?"

The Twice Blessed just smiled wider.

000

2026

Bianca smiled darkly at the man sitting with his back away from her on the bed. She moved swiftly and silently across the mattress to wrap her arms around his torso and plant a warm kiss on his neck and shoulder. Her hands caressed his firm chest, and she smiled fully. "I've missed you."

The dark haired man turned toward her, twisting her down into his lap where he claimed her mouth with a hard, passionate kiss. When he released her, he gave her a dimpled grin. "I take it things are progressing well?"

"I think the little whitelighter may have a nervous breakdown. The look on her face when she saw me was absolutely priceless. She'll be running for the hills in no time."

He pushed the hair from her face, giving her a roguish smile. "Good girl. And the Twice Blessed? Have the seeds of doubt been planted in his mind yet?"

"No," she replied. "Though, it's only a matter of time. Once you show him exactly what's going on in the past, the poor fool will have no choice but to see the truth."

"Sweet, Morgana, you are finally going to get your revenge on Merlin and Arthur. I promise."

The man kissed her roughly once more before tossing her back onto the bed and rising to his feet. At her pout, he smiled down at her. "Don't worry, Love, I'll be back. I just have to check in with the seer. I want to make sure our friend in the past is doing his part in the plan."

"Hurry, Nomed. I'm not a patient woman."

"I know."

As he shimmered out of the apartment, Bianca's love struck face fell to a deep scowl, and she wiped the back of her mouth with her arm. She let out a breath and shook her head, glaring up at the ceiling. "You better be right about this you halo wearing sadists because right now, whoever Chris Halliwell is, he seems like way more trouble than he's worth."

000

2004

Chris was sitting hunched over on a tiny cot, his arms across his knees with his forehead resting against his arms. He couldn't believe this was happening. He was sitting in a jail cell. A powerful source in the fight against evil, and he was stuck here like some common criminal. It's not like he really stole the Porsche. He was just trying to catch the demon. If that's what it even could be called. Paige's own personal gain consequence gone way wrong.

He had to admit, it'd been pretty funny to see Casey's face when she and Lucky had come up the stairs in the middle of his and Phoebe's lecturing Paige about summoning a sex toy. He'd never seen his friend flush like that before. It was nice to have someone around who understood how very disturbing it was to hear about and see all the sisters' sexual adventures. She'd almost gagged when she heard Paige say they'd done the same thing for Piper. It seemed his mom was a surrogate mother to her, and the idea of Piper doing those things bothered Casey as much as it did Chris. Though, he had to admit, it was less scarring than trying to stop her from making him half-fireman. He seriously hated Greg.

Then there was the fact poor Lucky had been standing behind Casey. When he'd asked so innocently, "What's a sex toy?" the conversation halted pretty quickly. Chris liked to think the boy would forget about his question, but he knew his son better than that by now. Once the kid got an idea in his head, he was relentless. Chris had figured that out once he realized Lucky wanted him and Casey back together.

He and Casey had been walking on egg shells around each other ever since their confrontation at P3, but Lucky didn't understand why, so he was constantly forcing them into situations where they had to be together. He'd often switch chairs so his parents had to sit next to one another at the table. One time he'd randomly called for Chris and then orbed out leaving him and Casey alone in the attic. She'd mumbled something about going to find him and left right away. Chris hated the whole situation. Lucky wanted his parents together, and Chris couldn't deny he was in love with Casey, but after hearing what his other version had done to her . . . Chris was surprised she hadn't taken Lucky and gotten as far away from him as possible. How she managed to stay friends with his counterpart he would never know.

Chris let out a frustrated groan. Being in this cell was giving him far too much time to think. He was running out of time to save Wyatt. His birthday was just around the corner, and he was no closer to figuring out what turned him. His situation with Casey was also driving him crazy. Lucky was a welcome distraction, but a distraction none the less.

The little boy had looked horrified when Morris showed up to arrest him. Chris had never felt more humiliated in his life than when his son had seen him cuffed and shoved into the back of a cruiser. Paige had promised to get him out of here, but he'd been in this cell for over an hour already. Maybe more. Where was she?

Orb lights slowly formed to his right, forming into Leo. Chris shook his head. No wonder it'd taken forever for someone to come. It wasn't like Chris would ever be a priority for the Elder. He remarked bitterly, "Took you long enough."

"Shh, not so loud," Leo whispered, glancing back toward the hallway, checking to make sure the coast was clear. "I'm getting you outta here."

He asked, not quite able to believe it, "Great. So Darryl's gonna cover?"

Leo turned toward him gesturing for him to get to his feet. "Forget about Darryl. Come on."

Chris leaned forward on the cot, shooting the Elder an incredulous look. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. We're just gonna orb out of here? What about exposure?"

"Right now, I'm more worried about them exposing you," Leo replied, his gaze locked on Chris'. The concern in his voice a sound Chris wasn't used to hearing directed at him.

"Yeah, but-"

"-Look, son . . ." Leo began, emphasizing 'son'.

Chris flinched, more affected by the title than he would have thought. It'd been so long since any version of Leo had actually called him that. The man he grew up with barely remembered he existed, and when he did, he didn't claim Chris that way. It was more, "Wyatt's little brother." The way this Leo said it . . . Chris couldn't deny it felt good.

". . . I'm not gonna let you hang here, okay?" the Elder continued. His tone left no room for argument as he finished, "Now come on. You've got an aunt to save."

Chris studied him for a second, not believing what he was hearing. Leo, the Elder who always followed the rules, who put the greater good and his job and pretty much everything else before him was actually willing to risk exposure just to get him out of a jail cell? Maybe Casey was right. Maybe this Leo really was completely different than the man he'd grown up knowing. He couldn't help but smile a little at the possibility.

The young man rose to his feet, his eyes fixed on Leo and purposefully remarked, "Thanks, Dad."

The two of them shared a moment before both orbing out of the cell and back to the manor. As they reappeared in the attic Phoebe was in the middle of talking to Paige's Mr. Right while Casey was cleaning up potion supplies, and Lucky stood in the middle of the attic, arms folded and glaring at Chris.

"Chris, you're out," Phoebe said, happily.

"Yeah, thank god," he breathed before noticing his son's deep scowl focused in his direction. He smiled weakly. "Hey, Buddy, what's wrong?"

"You stole a car!" the little boy cried, his arms flying up in the air. "I got grounded for two weeks for stealing Joey's pudding, and you stole a car!"

Leo and Phoebe exchanged smiles, amused at what was clearly deemed an injustice by the child.

Chris held up a hand. "Hey, hey, hey. Firstly, I did not steal the car. I borrowed it to chase a demon. Secondly, what about pudding?" He shot a look at Casey to clarify.

"He wanted his friend's chocolate pudding, so he orbed it out of the kid's bag into his own," Casey explained. "We gave him a long lecture on how stealing is wrong, and how what he did was an abuse of his powers. You then doled out a two week grounding from all electronics."

"Two weeks," Lucky said again, still fuming, "for pudding. You stole a car you big hippo!"

Chris rolled his eyes. "I did not steal-" He paused mid defense and frowned, "Did you just call me a hippo?"

"Yup," Lucky said. "Cause you are."

Chris turned to Casey, "Why is he calling me a hippo?" When she just shrugged, not understanding any more than he did, he turned to Lucky. "Why are you calling me a hippo?"

"Cause you say not to do stuff then you do it even worse. You're a hippo."

"Oooh," Casey realized, "Hippo-crit. Lucky, you mean to say your dad is a hypocrite."

Chris glared at her. "Don't encourage him."

"I'm just teaching him the correct word," she said smiling far too sweetly for his taste.

"Yeah, well, you're enjoying this way too much."

Leo cut in, "So, Phoebe, how's the potion coming? Chris has an idea on how you can find Paige."

"It works perfectly," Mr. Right answered for her, showing his bleeding hand as proof. After all, if he could bleed, his evil counterpart could be vanquished.

"Come on, Lucky," Casey held her hand out to her son. "Time for us to get out of the way, so they can save your Aunt Paige."

"Actually," Chris cut-in. "My plan involves you too."

"Me?" she asked, her voice going up a pitch.

"Phoebe doesn't have an active power, so she's going to need back up," he explained. "You two are going to have to sneak in."

Leo picked up, "Then, once you're in, we'll bring you the potion that makes the demon real."

Phoebe and Casey exchanged worried looks. Phoebe finally asked nervously, "And how exactly are we going to sneak in?"

Chris smirked while Leo looked guilty. Then, the men shared a look, causing both of them to smile knowing how both women were really going to hate the answer. Finally, Chris slowly explained, "You'll have to dress up like demonatrix."

"What's a demonaxtrix?" Lucky asked.

Leo scooped the little boy up. "You know, I bet you're hungry. How about I make you some supper, huh?"

Before the little boy could answer, Leo gave Chris a pat on the shoulder and carried his grandson down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Oh, just get it over with," Phoebe relented, gesturing vaguely with her hand.

Casey folded her arms over her chest and glared at him. "Fine. Hurry."

Chris snapped his fingers and both women were decked out in head to toe leather. Casey was in a leather corset and tight black pants with knee high boots. Phoebe was in a crisscrossed halter, leather pants, boots and a blonde wig.

Phoebe glanced over to Casey and pulled a face. "Hey, why doesn't she have to wear a wig?

"Because no one will recognize her," Chris answered as though it were obvious. "You're a Charmed One. Everyone knows what you look like."

"This sucks," Phoebe whined.

Casey glanced down at herself and shrugged. "It beats dressing like a wood nymph." Off their confused looks, "Never mind. Shall we?"

When Phoebe gave a nod, Chris raised his hand and orbed them both to the underworld where he knew the secret hideout of the demonatrix was located. Now, all he could do was wait.

000

2004

The girls had been gone for too long. Chris was getting worried. Maybe he shouldn't have let Casey go down there. He just didn't like the idea of Phoebe going alone without her active powers, and it wasn't like Casey was a rookie. She'd been fighting demons since she was a kid. Still, the more time went by, the more anxious he felt. His son's mother could be in danger, and he was just sitting here.

He thought about going to check on Lucky again downstairs, but he was pretty sure his son was getting annoyed with his constant hovering. Last time he'd gone to see how the homework was coming he'd gotten a huge sigh and eye roll combo. Though, at least Lucky wasn't calling him a hippo anymore . . .

"Something's wrong," Leo said, his eyes closed in concentration. "I can't sense them."

Chris rose from his seat. "I'm going back down there."

Leo moved to his side, putting a hand on his chest to calm him down. "No, you can't. Lucky needs you here."

"Leo, they need the potion, alright?"

His father shook his head. "It's too dangerous. I'm not risking you too. Casey strikes me as a resourceful woman, and Phoebe always finds a way. They'll be okay."

Chris pursed his lips, his gaze slipping to the floor. His eyes grew distant as he thought of the time in his life Casey hadn't been okay. After a moment, he felt Leo's hand on his shoulder and looked up to find the man looking down at him with deep concern.

"Chris what is it?" The Elder's voice was soft, almost hesitant. "I know we're not close in your time, but I've noticed things have been a bit tense between the two of you lately. You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to, but . . . I'd like to help if I can. I'm told I'm a good listener."

Chris normally would have brushed him off, pushed him away with some sarcastic retort, but something in Leo's gaze gave him pause. The man had just broken some major rules for him earlier. He found himself slowly answering, "She died when I was fourteen. In my time, Casey was killed by a warlock. She bled to death in my arms."

Leo's lips parted as horror filled his soft blue-green eyes. "Oh, Son . . ."

"I screamed for you," Chris quietly told him. "I begged for you to come, but you never did. It's part of the reason I hated you for so long."

The elder shook his head, flabbergasted. "I don't understand. Why didn't I come? Where was I?"

Chris shrugged. "I don't know. You never told me." He took a breath, "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up. It's just . . . she died. She was the first girl I ever loved, and I watched her die. Then years later, Wyatt sent Bianca after me because he knew she'd remind me of Casey. He was hoping she'd turn me evil." He smiled softly, "He never expected I'd turn her. She started off so hard and cold, but it was an act. She was scared and felt so alone and hopeless. Once I got to know the real Bianca . . . she was ridiculously cunning, but she could be sweet and thoughtful. She was tough, never cut me any slack and didn't put up with my attitude. I couldn't help but fall in love with her. We fought side by side for years, trusting each other with our lives as we worked in secret against Wyatt. She taught me everything I needed to know to survive. She was my everything. Then, irony of ironies, she ended up bleeding to death in my arms too."

Leo's heart broke for his son. "Chris, I'm so sorry. You never said what happened. . .I had hoped it wasn't that."

"After I lost Bianca, I was done," Chris said, not really focusing on anything anymore. "She was the love of my life, and she was gone. Every woman I had loved died. Love was clearly not meant to be part of my life. Fine. So be it. I had bigger priorities anyway. Then all the sudden this precocious five year old shows up here, and he's incredible, and he talks about his mom, and then it ends up being Casey. She's alive. She's alive and gorgeous and sweet and sassy and an amazing mother, and I can't stop . . ." Chris looked up at Leo his eyes soft, "I'm falling in love with her, and I can't make myself stop."

Leo smiled softly. "Why do you need to? Chris, I know you've been hurt by love horribly in the past, but maybe, this is the universe's way of making it up to you? From what I can tell, she's an amazing girl and a great fit with you. Not to mention, Lucky – he could have his parents together."

Chris let out a breath, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "I know all that, but it's not that simple, Dad. Other me did something awful. He didn't just break her heart; he put it through a shredder. I kissed her, and it brought all the pain right back for her. You should have seen her - just reliving it was making her fall apart. I don't know how to fix it."

"It's not yours to fix," Leo replied. "You're not the one who did it. You also can't ignore it happened, and it was obviously traumatic for her from what you're saying."

Chris flopped onto the sofa. "So what do I do?"

Leo took a seat next to him, giving him a thin lipped smile. "I wish I could tell you, but that's something only you can decide. On the one hand, you two may be perfect for each other, and given some time, you may be able to fight for her and win. On the other hand, sometimes when we truly love someone the best thing for them is to let them go."

His son put his head back against the couch. "Yeah, I was afraid you were gonna say that."

000

After helping Phoebe kick some major demonatrix butt, saving Piper (who couldn't resist making a snide comment about her outfit) and Paige (who at least kept her mocking focused on Phoebe), Casey was more than ready to change into her pajamas, find a book and just relax for a little bit. Unfortunately, when she went up to the attic to find something to read, Chris was sitting on the couch flipping through the Book of Shadows.

He glanced up at the sound of her entrance. "Hey. Sounds like everything went well?"

"Your mom thinks this is part of my normal wardrobe, but sure, aside from that, just peachy."

"Sorry," Chris offered. "Want me to conjure you a sweatshirt?"

"No. Thanks." She shifted uncomfortably. For some reason she just didn't know what to say to him now. He looked so guilty every time she'd seen him since P3. She hadn't meant to be so harsh. Once the flood gates opened, she hadn't been able to stop herself. She'd taken out her hurt and anger on him, and he hadn't even been the one to do it. Not really anyway. She settled on a safe topic. "So, Lucky was good for you? No more name calling?"

Chris chuckled. "Uh, yeah. He was fine. Leo made him a frozen pizza, and he worked on his homework."

"Good. That's good."

"Listen, Casey, about what you told me, I just want to say . . ." he paused, a strange look crossing his face.

Little did Casey know an astral version of Barbas was whispering in his ear. _She looks so very beautiful, doesn't she? You know you love her. You weren't the one to hurt her. You would never hurt her. You love her. You could be a family. You should be a family. Fight for her._

". . . I can't give up on us," Chris found himself saying. He rose to his feet as shock kept her stone still, mouth hanging open. "I wasn't the one to hurt you. You have to see he's not me. Look in my eyes and tell me if you see him there."

Barbas smirked, moving to croon in her ear. _He isn't the man you knew. So similar but so veeeery different. Maybe there's a reason you two are here together. You loved him for a such a veeeery loooong time. All those old feelings are coming back. Your heart is racing . . ._

Casey's hand went to her chest as she felt her heart flutter. She stared into Chris' jade eyes and had to admit, the green orbs somehow looked older and harder than the pair she was used to seeing on her friend's face. This was a man who'd seen too much, who'd been hurt as deeply as she had.

 _You can't deny you've always had such . . . chemistry. You miss the heat. You miss the passion._ Barbas tilted his head, taking glee in his power of suggestion as he hissed in her ear. _Kiss him._

Before she really had any conscious notion of what she was doing, Casey threw herself into Chris' arms, her hands burying themselves in his silky hair as she kissed him, deeply. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight against his chest, returning the embrace with equal fervor. It wasn't until his hand moved to her lower back and started creeping lower she realized what was happening.

She jumped back, horrified. Her hands went up to her mouth. "Oh no. No, no, no, no, no."

"Casey?" Chris asked, confused.

"Why did I do that?" she asked, confused herself. "What the hell was that?"

Chris smiled softly, moving toward her. "Amazing."

She pointed a finger at him, backing away. "No. Not amazing. Horrible. Wrong. So very, very wrong. You don't understand. I never got a chance to tell you everything. You need to know I am completely in love with W-"

 _You can't tell him about Wyatt. He won't understand. He'll hate you._

"With who?" Chris asked. "Who is this guy you keep talking about in the future? Do I know him?"

Casey found she couldn't bring herself to tell him. She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. This," she gestured between the two of them, "cannot happen."

Barbas smirked, his hands behind his back as he sauntered back to Chris. _She's just soooo veeery scared. Obviously she wants you. She did kiss you after all._

"I get that you're scared after what my other version did to you, Case, but I love you." He took her hands, staring into her eyes, which had gone wide at his declaration. "I swear to you I will never hurt you. I lost you once, and I'm not losing you again. Not ever."

She squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm so sorry, Chris. I don't want to hurt you, but I don't . . ."

 _You can't tell him you don't love him. It's not true, is it? He's your best friend. The father of your child. You can't deny the truth – you are deeeeply connected. You can't deny you love him. You've always loved him. Now, he returns your affection, and you simply cannot resist temptation. Fall to it. Give in to your darkest desires. Claim him_.

Casey grabbed Chris by the shirt, pulling him down to her, capturing his mouth with her own again. Her hands slipped around his back, her fingers digging into his shoulders before sliding down his back to his butt. Her lips moved to his ear, lightly teasing the sensitive lobe. Her breath was hot on his ear and sent shivers through him.

Swept up in the passion, Chris picked her up, smiling as her legs wrapped around his waist. He moved her to the sofa, lying her gently on her back before moving on top, kissing her throat while his hands caressed her. He was just about to start untying the leather corset she was wearing when a tiny voice broke the spell.

"Dad? Momma?"

The fog suddenly lifted, Casey shoved Chris off her, sitting up and moving away from him. Her face was horrified as she spotted their son in the doorway. "Oh god. Lucky."

The little boy broke out in a wide smile his arms going up in the air as he cried, "YES!"

Chris ran a hand through his hair, red with embarrassment but still smiling at the child's enthusiasm. "Uh, Lucky, did you need something?"

The little boy shook his head, his smile completely irremovable. "Nope. I'm good. Super good now. I'll just go put myself to bed. You keep kissing. I won't come back. Promise."

As the little boy took off out of the room, Chris let out a short chuckle. "Well, that was interesting." He turned to Casey, about to pick up where they left off, but she'd risen to her feet. Her back was to him, but he could see she was holding herself and her shoulders were shaking.

"Case?" He was on his feet in an instant, gently turning her around. "Hey, look at me."

"I have to find Lucky," she murmured, her face downcast. "I have to explain this wasn't what he thought."

The joy he'd felt only moments ago fell to a sharp stab of pain. Chris set his jaw, his eyes dark, "So what was it then? You keep telling me no, but then you kiss me. Twice. You're giving me whiplash here."

"I don't know. I have no idea why I did that," she answered quietly. She looked up at him, tears in her eyes. "I can't be around you right now. I'm so sorry."

Before he could say a word, she bolted out of the room. Chris felt his chest constrict painfully as he watched her go. He felt like they'd been so close to breaking through whatever issues she had with his other version. Then again, hadn't he planned on telling her he was going to abide by her wishes and leave her alone? That he was letting her go? What had made him change his mind?

 _Don't give up on her_ , Barbas ordered. _She's your chance for the family you've always dreamed of having._

Chris shoved his hands in his pockets. "I'm not giving up on you, Case. We belong together."

As Chris walked out of the room, Barbas' astral form disappeared, joining with his body in the underworld. He struck out at a table of potion supplies, growling in frustration. "Damn that insufferable brat. If he wouldn't have interrupted them, the future would be mine."

"Yours?" the seer asked. "I thought you were working with our compatriot in the future to save us all from King Arthur's reign."

"Now that you've already told me about how to turn the Twice Blessed evil, I don't really need either of you, do I?"

Before the seer could react, Barbas incinerated her. He put his hands behind his head, grinning wickedly. "I feel much better now."

He would make certain those the Twice Blessed held most dear betrayed him. Then, he would serve the dark King as the new Merlin, guiding him in his brother's place. He will become unstoppable, and the world will be full of darkness and oh, so much fear. Oh, yes, so much wonderful fear.

TBC . . .


	13. Dark End of the Street

Thanks so much to the amazing reviewers: Callisto Nicol, Anthony and sise87! You guys make my muse soooo happy. Keeps things flowing with this story. :)

Disclaimer: Took lines from Witch Wars. Changed things for my own evil purposes. Don't own it.

2026

Bianca didn't just want her cup of coffee. She needed it with every fiber of her being. Dealing with Nomed and the Elders had put her in a foul mood, and the only thing capable of making her feel in any way normal was a nice steaming cup of very strong very black coffee.

Nomed had been furious when he'd returned to the apartment late last night. He'd gone to the Seer in hopes of checking on the progress being made in the past only to find the woman was gone – vanished as though she never existed. Asking around, he'd learned she'd been killed by Barbas twenty-two years ago. Apparently, the old school demon didn't play well with others. Bianca could have told Nomed as much, but he was so stubborn. He believed he'd climbed the ranks high enough to earn the legendary demon's respect and cooperation. What a fool.

Dealing with his childish temper tantrum was bad enough, but then he'd wanted to work out his frustrations with a little sexual release, and she'd had no choice but to quietly cast a spell on him, so he'd fall asleep. She wasn't sure how many more times it would work. He was getting suspicious. It was already questionable that she'd returned to him in the first place after she'd broken up with him six months ago once she'd learned he was a demon. The Elders needed to come up with a better plan and fast.

In the meantime, she had her coffee. Only, at the precise moment she lifted her mug to take the first glorious sip, a strange little man approached, smiling stupidly at her from across the table.

"Is this seat taken?" He gestured to the empty chair in front of him.

"Are you prone to hallucinations?"

He blinked. "Um, no."

"Then obviously it's not."

To her dismay, the man didn't pull the seat away to use at a different table as she had assumed he would. He sat in it. Then he shot her another goofy smile and held out his hand. "I'm Kip."

Sometimes, she really hated the fact biting sarcasm was her first instinct. It so often got her into trouble. She should really start with questions. Maybe she wouldn't be in the mess she found herself in if she'd asked her former whitelighter more questions. Then again, George had been so frustratingly by the book he probably wouldn't have answered her anyway. She wondered if Molly had any idea what the Elders were planning. She doubted it. The girl was far too close to the situation. Nomed wanted very much to get her out of the way. Why the Elders had made Molly her whitelighter, she'd never know. It was like they were trying to get her killed.

The man lowered his hand when she didn't respond. "So, what's your name?"

Bianca took a sip of her coffee instead of answering him, closing her eyes as the warmth spread through her. She let out a satisfied breath. When she opened her eyes, she found him still staring expectantly at her. Feeling marginally better, she responded, "Bianca."

"Bianca," he repeated, as though mulling it over. "Didn't happen to go to Baker High, did ya?"

She took another deeper drink, letting it heat her from within. As long as she had coffee, she could deal with anything. Even horrible flirting. She gave a half-hearted smile. "No. My mother moved us away from the city when I was about four. Some family drama."

"Sorry to hear."

The woman just shrugged, focusing on her drink again.

"So, you really like coffee, huh?"

Bianca smirked. "It's about the only thing holding me together right now." She flashed to the conversation she'd had with George shortly before he'd been killed, and how he'd completely turned her life upside down. "Been a long few months."

"I'm just going to cut to the chase, B," Kip said, leaning forward, hands clasped on the table. "You seeing anyone?"

The Phoenix took another swig, setting the mug on the table and staring down at it for a moment. "It's complicated but more or less."

"Yeah, I figured," he bemoaned, his face falling. He rose from his chair and extended his hand again. "Can't blame a guy for checking, right?"

Bianca let a real smile grace her face, giving his hand a delicate shake. As he walked away, she had the strangest feeling of familiarity. Almost like she had known him in another life. Considering she'd apparently had two past lives, she supposed it was possible. According to George, both of those lives were going to greatly affect this one.

Meanwhile, around the side of the small café, Molly poked her head around the corner, ducking back behind the building as she saw her friend heading her way. She was practically bouncing with anticipation. When Kip slipped past her, she grabbed him and orbed straight to Wyatt's apartment. Once they'd reformed in the living room, she turned toward him eagerly gesturing with her hands for him to spill.

Wyatt looked up from his place on the sofa, also anxious to hear the verdict.

"Sorry, Mols, she's one of the good guys."

"What?" the whitelighter cried. She covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes wide as she realized how loud she'd been. A little more quietly, she questioned, "Are you positive? You weren't with her long. Maybe you missed something?"

"Hey, now, I may be a joker, but I do actually know what I'm doing, and I'm telling you she's on our side. She's super frustrated with those of the golden robes but still working for them."

The Twice Blessed frowned. "She's working for the Elders? I don't get it. Then why was she so hostile to Molly?"

"Her last whitelighter was killed," Kip answered. "I get the impression she blames herself. It might've been to push Molly away to protect her."

Molly flopped down next to Wyatt on the sofa, completely floored. She had been banking on Bianca being evil. Now, not only was Chris' former fiancée gorgeous, but also, on the side of good. A lump formed in her throat as she hesitantly asked, "So, the potion?"

Kip wagged a finger. "See, that's the weird part. According to her memories, her old whitelighter said the Elders wanted her to convince Wyatt to make the potion. Said it would be vital in keeping Camelot safe. Didn't say how. Did make it pretty clear they didn't want her to give any hint it was for them."

"Why not just have any one of the very many, many whitelighters in our family just ask me? Or just tell me themselves?" Wyatt wondered. "Why the subterfuge? They had to realize I wouldn't trust her, right? Or do they just think I'm that gullible? Was that it? Was it some sort of test?"

Kip shrugged, moving over to the fridge and pulling open the door, sticking his head inside as he dug around. "She didn't know, ergo, I don't know."

Seeing the frustration and confusion radiating off of Wyatt, Molly put a hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. She smiled softly at him. "We'll figure it out, Wyatt. I promise." She turned to Kip, "Anything else?"

"She knows about her other lives, but doesn't actually remember them," Kip continued, coming out of the fridge with a plastic container.

"Lives?" Wyatt asked.

Kip peered around the door to look at him. "Yeah, she was apparently Morgan Le Fay."

The Twice Blessed's eyebrows shot up. "My brother was engaged to my worst enemy?"

"You were kind of the source of all evil in that world," Molly softly reminded him. She flinched when he winced at the words. "Sorry."

The telepath continued, "She didn't seem to know much about that life – just that she and Chris were partners in the fight against you. I don't even know if she knows they were engaged. She seemed more focused on the fact he was the reincarnation of Merlin, which I thought was pretty wicked. You two have the best past lives. So jealous."

Wyatt shook his head. "That's not right. The Angel of Destiny said he was Lancelot - Hence Lucky's existence."

Kip shrugged, putting the container back in the fridge and pulling out another one. "I'm just repeating what I heard. In any case, they told her to protect him and his mission at any cost." He opened the container and took a sniff, making a face before returning it to the fridge. "She's apparently in deep cover with her demon ex – guy named Nomed, which is part of why she's so angry at the Elders. Feels used."

Wyatt didn't even care when Kip grabbed his left over pizza and started eating it. He was too busy trying to piece everything together. Right now, it wasn't making any sense to him. Bianca was good. She was supposed to stop Nomed. Why not just tell Wyatt where he was so he could vanquish him? Was it the only leverage she thought she had for the potion? What was the deal with the potion anyway? Why were the Elders being so secretive about why they wanted it? That they were the ones to want it? Wyatt had no idea, but he wished for the millionth time Chris was here. If anyone could solve this puzzle it was his kid brother.

He let out a breath. "Well, that's it, I guess."

Molly frowned. "What's it?"

"I have to make the potion," he declared.

The only woman present shook her head. "No, Wyatt. I don't like it. We need to know why. What are the Elders up to? Just because they're paragons of good doesn't necessarily mean they won't do things to hurt us. They have in the past."

Wyatt ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I don't see what choice I have. Kip literally ripped the information from her head. It's not like you can lie in your thoughts. If the Elders think the potion is necessary then I'll do it. Besides, once I deliver it to Bianca, I get Nomed, Lucky is safe, and Bianca is free. Everybody wins."

A deep knot formed in Molly's stomach. She knew she was missing something. Something important. Why were the Elders lying to Wyatt? What didn't they want him to know? How could Chris be both Lancelot and Merlin? How could a soul-binding potion possibly help save the new Camelot?

Suddenly, the pieces clicked in Molly's mind. The Angel of Destiny had told them . . . Lucky had warned her . . . she hadn't understood until now.

"Oh my god."

000

2004

Casey looked up from the table in the magic school library just as Chris came in escorting his mother. She immediately lowered her gaze back to the table, flushing deeply. She didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be anywhere near him right now. After what she'd let almost happen the very sight of him made her stomach churn painfully with guilt.

Her plan to never be in the same room as Chris had been going pretty well until Phoebe had called a family meeting and had insisted everyone come. She had a theory on who might be responsible for getting to Wyatt and wanted Casey's perspective from the changed timeline. So, here she was trapped in the same room with Chris, whose green eyes locked on her the moment he entered the room. He wanted answers she couldn't seem to give him.

"Sorry I'm late," Piper apologized as Chris helped her take a seat at the table. "I'm not moving real fast these days." She shot a look to her son, "Are you sure you don't want to be born anytime soon already?"

He gave her a small smile. "Don't be in such a hurry."

Lucky suddenly jumped up from his chair next to his mother, offering it to his father, who despite the obvious glare Casey was giving him took it. It seemed her talk with Lucky had done nothing to dissuade their son from thinking she and Chris needed to be together. She'd tried to explain while she loved his dad, she wasn't _in_ love with him. She tried to tell him his dad was still confused from the magic, and he didn't know any better – that it was just a mistake, a misunderstanding. Clearly, she hadn't been very convincing.

Chris turned to look at her, and Casey forced herself to ignore him, staring down at the table instead. He slowly slid his hand on the table toward where hers were resting, lightly brushing his fingers against the back of her hand. Her heart fluttered, goose bumps forming on her arms. She quickly pulled her hands down onto her lap, moving in her chair so her back was to him. She heard him let out a deep breath, clearly frustrated.

"Okay," Phoebe said excitedly, "I hate to rush things, but what do we say we get this family meeting started, huh?"

Paige frowned. "Hey, where's Leo?"

Gideon, standing behind them, flipping through a large, ancient tome, answered solemnly, "He's on the witch killer path, which you all should be focusing on as well."

"We actually have bigger things to deal with, Gideon," Phoebe argued. "Like trying to figure out who's after Wyatt, and I think I might have an angle on that."

"You found the demon?" Paige questioned.

"It may not be a demon," her sister answered. "Look, we've relied on magic all this time, and it's gotten us nowhere. Since I can't rely on my premonitions to help, I've had to resort to statistics."

Piper pulled a face and struggled to repeat, "Statistics?"

"Yes," Phoebe confirmed. "Did you know that fifty percent of violent crimes are perpetrated by someone the victim knew? Don't you see? Whoever turns Wyatt evil might actually be someone we know or even care about."

Casey frowned, thinking about what Phoebe was purposing. Without realizing she was thinking out loud, she said, "That actually makes a lot of sense. Wyatt is so incredibly trusting. If someone he cared about were to betray him . . ." She winced, not able to finish the thought.

Gideon slammed shut the book so loudly Casey actually jumped in her chair. When she looked back at the Elder a chill ran through her. Something in his eyes . . . why was he so angry? Unless . . . She dropped her gaze back to the table, something coming together in her mind.

"This theory might make some sense in the lives of normal people, but you aren't normal people," Gideon passionately argued. "There's an entire underworld of demons out there who want you dead, and today is no exception, which brings me back to the witch killer . . ."

Rising from his chair, Chris cut in, "Hold on. They're on to something here. I mean, we've practically over turned every demonic stone, right? I mean, at least this is something new."

The Elder shook his head in disbelief. "I don't believe this." His voice grew in volume and ire. "Someone is killing witches, possibly as we speak. How is that not your _only_ _priority_?"

"Because we're running out of time," Chris snapped, "that's why."

Piper's face fell, the color draining as she asked, "What do you mean? Why?"

Chris looked wracked with guilt as he replied softly, "I should've told you sooner. What happens to Wyatt happens before I'm born."

"What?" Paige blinked dumbly.

Phoebe, not hiding her frustration, questioned sharply, "And you're just telling us this now?"

"I thought I'd given myself enough time," he answered softly. "I'm so sorry."

The wheels in Casey's mind were turning again. It happened before Chris was born. Something about the timing was critical. What was different about before Chris was born? Demons certainly hadn't changed. The boys were under attack a lot growing up. Wyatt had always been so powerful he'd easily fended off anyone who'd ever attacked. She found her gaze sliding back to Gideon.

She'd barely heard Phoebe announce a plan to divide and conquer. She was too focused on the Elder and the uneasy feeling she was slowly developing. Why was this man so involved in their lives now but not in the future? She'd known the Halliwells since she was two years old, and she'd never even heard them mention Gideon. What had happened?

Lucky whispered to his mother, "I don't like him either. He looks at me and Uncle Wyatt funny."

Her son's judgment was impeccable. Partly because of his abilities and partly because children always seemed naturally able to read people more effectively than adults. If Lucky didn't trust Gideon, Casey knew her instincts were correct.

There was something very not right about the Elder.

000

After Paige had vanquished their lucky break in the witch killer case, Chris found himself sitting on the sofa in the parlor of the manor, flipping through the Book of Shadows for what easily had to be the millionth time since he'd been in the past. He practically had it memorized at this point. Looking through it now seemed so . . . pointless.

"So," Leo asked, from his perch on the arm of the sofa, "what is it we're looking for?"

Chris ran a hand through his hair. "Uh, any demon that could be powerful enough to be organizing the underworld, or any demon who might be running some sort of training camp for younger demons, or any demon who could be-"

"-So basically any demon?" Leo cut in.

"Yeah." His son let out a deep breath and flopped back against the cushions. "This sucks, you know that? We're running out of time here, and we've got nothing – repeat nothing – to go on."

Leo offered a thin smile. "We've faced worse."

"What's worse than not knowing?" Chris countered. "For over a year now, I've been looking, and you didn't know this deadline was looming, but I did. I knew _every_. Single. Day. That's why I was almost never able to relax."

The father's heart broke for his son. It was so much responsibility and pressure he'd put on himself. No wonder he'd pushed them all so hard. He was frightened and carrying the burden of saving the future all alone. He softly questioned, "Why didn't you tell us?"

The young man gave a small shrug. "Because I didn't want to get you involved. I was trying to protect you."

"Chris, we're your parents. We're supposed to protect you," Leo gently chided, with a soft smile. "Not the other way around. I'm sure you feel the same about Lucky. Speaking of which, where is my favorite grandson and his mother?"

"I didn't want to take any chances, so Lucky is at magic school until the witch killer is caught. Mom asked Casey to do inventory for her, so she's at P3."

Leo, noticing a strange look cross his son's face, gently probed, "How are things with you two?"

Chris let out a short, sad chuckle. "Completely screwed up." Noticing his father patiently waiting for an explanation, a gentle look in his eyes, Chris found himself opening up to the man. "I told her how I felt, and for a minute, I thought she felt the same way. She kissed me, and it was incredible, and we were starting to. . ." He reddened, ducking his head, realizing he was talking to his father.

The Elder smiled, understanding. "Things were getting a bit intense?"

"Yeah."

"So what happened?"

The witchlighter shrugged. "I have no idea. Okay, yeah, Lucky sort of walked in on us, but he was happy about it. _Really_ happy about it – like all his dreams just came true. I didn't think it was a big deal, so when he left, I turned back to Casey thinking we'd just pick up where we left off, but it was like she'd flipped a switch. She was nearly in tears. Said she needed to explain to Lucky it wasn't what he thought then she bolted. She's refused to be in the same room with me ever since."

Leo offered his son a thin smile. "It has to be hard for her. You are and aren't the person she's always known. Not to mention, you don't really know what's going to happen when you go back to your own time. She had a life before all of this." Off Chris' suddenly sheepish expression, "Chris, what aren't you telling me?"

"In her future, we're sort of both involved with other people," he answered reluctantly.

The Elder gave him a distinctly disapproving look, the kind Chris was much more accustomed to seeing on the man's face. "Chris, no wonder she's so upset. She feels like she's betraying those people. You may not remember them, but she does. The guilt has to be eating her up." His face softened as his son's fell. "Listen, I know you love her, but you need to do what's best for her. Without all your memories intact, without knowing what exactly it is you can offer her in the future . . . you need to stop."

Chris nodded taking in a deep breath. "I know. I get it. I was going to, but then . . . it's like I get around her, and I can't think straight. I will let her go though. I will. She wanted to talk to me about something when she was done at P3. I'll tell her then."

000

Casey had to recount the supplies at the club three times simply because she couldn't concentrate. She knew in her gut she and Lucky were right about Gideon. She just needed to check with Chris and see if Gideon was in anyway part of his timeline, or if he knew what happened to the Elder in the future. Once she had that information it would help decide for certain if he was the difference between their futures. She would have done it right after their meeting this morning, but Chris had been assigned witch killer duty, and she didn't want to distract him right before he left to track someone killing witches. It was too dangerous.

It also wasn't helping her get inventory done that she felt so physically tired. Moving around boxes to check supplies had seemed like much more work than it ever had before. Not to mention the coughing bout that hit her a little while ago. Hard, body wracking coughs for several minutes straight. Her chest still hurt from it. She figured it would be her luck to get a stupid chest cold now.

Finally done in the back room, Casey was rubbing her tight chest as she went behind the bar to start checking the liquor supply. Just as she reached the bottles, she suddenly felt the hairs on her neck stand on end. She whirled around, her eyes darting wildly around the room for the source of her sudden fear but couldn't see anyone. Out of thin air, little golden specks flew at her face, making her blink and cough again.

The witch would never remember what happened next.

Gideon abruptly appeared in front of her, his brown eyes locking on her vacant pair. "At the meeting this morning, you decided the witch killers are after Wyatt. You are positive they are the ones Chris and the Charmed Ones have been looking for all this time. You must convince them of this fact."

Satisfied he'd covered his tracks, the Elder orbed out of the club in a flurry of dark purple orbs. He'd been so focused on his own goals he hadn't realized he and the witch weren't alone. He would never have left her so vulnerable on purpose. After all, she wasn't a threat. He was only after Wyatt and Lucky.

Barbas shimmered in front of the witch with a wicked grin. He dramatically waved his hands in front of her face, practically giddy as she continued staring blankly ahead. He wasn't sure how long the effects of the memory dust would last, but he would certainly make excellent use of it.

The demon moved to her ear crooning, "You also had another little epiphany this morning. You would do anything to be with this version of Christopher for as loooong as you can. You realize now he is the love of your life – your true soul mate."

"Wyatt," Casey breathed, her eyes closing as though she were suddenly in physical pain.

As she spoke the name, Barbas made a disgusted face. Maybe he'd pushed his luck too far? She seemed to be fighting against his words and coming out from the dusting. He shimmered away before the witch could catch him.

When Casey opened her eyes, she blinked several times, trying to clear the sudden fog in her mind. She felt almost inebriated, everything a bit off balance and fuzzy. She actually had to grab the counter to steady herself for a moment. Perhaps it was her cloudy thinking that made her swear someone was here a minute ago. Then again, maybe it was the fatigue she'd been feeling. Maybe she was getting sick?

Or maybe fighting her feelings was just too damn exhausting.

000

The witch killer case just kept becoming stranger by the minute. Chris had gone with Paige to save a witch named Tali from an attack by a very powerful Brute Demon only to find the demon wasn't all that interested in the witch. While he could have easily killed the young woman, he'd only taken her amulet and shimmered away without a fight. At first, they were worried the amulet possessed some sort of powerful ability the demon wanted, but apparently, it was just a decorative trinket from Tali's grandmother. It didn't make sense why the demon would be after it.

In any case, once they'd gotten a ring from Tali's grandmother, Paige had been able to scry for the Brute Demon. Figuring it was a trap, Leo had gone with her leaving Chris currently alone with the innocent. He gestured for Tali to take a seat in the big white chair while he perched on the arm of the love seat across from her.

"Is there any place we can go where-" Chris' question was left unasked as the front doors to the manor creaked open and a gasp drew his attention behind him and to his left. To his surprise, a darklighter arrow was frozen midair a few inches away from his side, the arrow's owner also unmoving a few feet further back. He didn't register Tali's fearful shriek. Instead, he flicked out his hand, sending the arrow flying back to its owner, incinerating the darklighter.

Casey came hurrying from her spot in the doorway, throwing Paige's car keys on the table before, to Chris' surprise, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug. When she pulled back to look at him, her doe brown eyes were full of worry and some other emotion the witchlighter couldn't quite believe he was seeing. He had to be imagining it. His own wants making him see what couldn't be there. Yet, her voice was so tender as she asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he informed her, his stomach flipping at the look in her eyes and the tone of her voice. "Thanks to you. I never saw him coming."

"It's because we're being watched," Paige announced as she and Leo orbed into the room.

As soon as the others had formed, Casey took a step away from Chris, her eyes dropping to the floor and her face coloring as if she'd been caught doing more than hugging their son and nephew. First the cold shoulder this morning, now this? Chris wasn't sure what was going on with her, but he very much wanted to find out.

Paige glanced up at the ceiling, her eyes shifting over the entire room as she said, "Sons of bitches. Where are the cameras?"

Chris forced himself to look away from Casey for now and turned to his aunt. "What cameras?"

Leo took a seat next to Tali on the sofa and explained, "There's some sort of live feed going on in the crystals."

"Yeah, except I think they cut it off," Paige said, lifting the crystal up to her eye. "I'm not seeing anything."

Chris shook his head, completely floored by the idea someone had managed to sneak into the manor and install these camera-crystals without being detected. "Well, who?"

"I don't know. I vanquished the Brute Demon before I could ask him," Paige told him. Still angry, she looked back up to the ceiling, looking around trying to spot the cameras. "What is this some sort of game?"

The question triggered a memory for Chris, and he slowly answered, "Actually, it might be."

Leo asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Well, I heard something when I was down in the underworld, but I thought it was just a rumor," Chris answered. As Paige's eyes started to narrow at him, he finished a bit sheepishly, "About a demonic game show. Kinda like Survivor but for demons."

"And you didn't tell us this why?" Paige asked, clearly annoyed.

Chris, getting defensive, responded, "Because I didn't think it was relevant."

"Okay, that's your theme song today," Paige snapped. "Did you notice?"

Leo chided, "Paige."

Chris nodded his head, trying to play off the sting of his aunt's words. After all, he felt guilty enough about the many mistakes he seemed to be making lately without her help. When he felt Casey put a hand on his arm, giving it a gentle squeeze, he looked over to find her smiling softly in encouragement, and he realized how much he missed her lately. Just her smile was enough to make him feel better.

"Yeah, we have to get out of here," Paige announced, "because they are listening to us."

Chris only half-heard Paige's plan to take Tali and all head to magic school to figure out their next move. He was too distracted by the feel of Casey's hand slipping into his own, her thumb lightly brushing the back of his hand. It was a feather light caress that sent a shiver through him. He frowned at her in question only to find her looking at him that way again. Could it be? Had she changed her mind?

Part of him hoped to whatever power was listening she was because one look at her, and Chris felt all his resolve start to melt away.

000

After rescuing Phoebe from a shapeshifter, everyone was gathered in the Magic School researching the athame she'd swiped from her attacker. Paige had been able to find out it was a power sucking athame, but the book didn't mention what type of demon used it, or what the strange carving on the handle, 'WW' meant. It seemed they had hit a dead end.

Gideon walked into the room carrying a large tome. "I think I may have found something that can help."

As he set the book down in front of Paige, she immediately recognized the image in it. "Hey, it's the crystal thingy."

"It's actually an ancient magical form of voyeurism," the Elder explained. "The Ronyx crystal. Our demon friends must have found a way to put a new spin on an old idea."

Phoebe peering over at the book suddenly moved closer. "Wait a minute. It's got an incantation to activate it."

As she began chanting, an image sprung to life from the crystal. No one had noticed Gideon moving his hand behind her back, actually triggering the magic. The crystal showed images of their family before cutting to what seemed to be a show title, 'Witch Wars'. A man's voice announced, "Tonight on a very special episode you'll see the ultimate battle where the Game Masters themselves take on not just any witches but the legendary Charmed Ones. It'll be winner takes all, and we will take all. Their lives, their powers and, last but not least, their progeny."

Chris' head snapped up at the last part, realizing the implications and feeling a cold sense of dread run through him.

"That's what their show is about? Killing us?" Phoebe asked, disgusted.

"Then either me or Wyatt," Chris said darkly.

"It has to be Wyatt," Casey said softly, a pained quality to her tone no one but Gideon noticed. She continued, "Which means the Game Masters are probably the ones we've been looking for all along. After all, they've been using that athame to collect powers hoping to gain enough to steal yours."

Following her train of thought, Chris finished, "And then Wyatt's."

Gideon watched, a small smirk playing on the corner of his mouth as the others immediately leapt on board with the girl's belief. Coming from someone who was practically family how could they not believe it? It had been an ingenious move on his part. Not only had he managed to get the little witch off his trail, he'd effectively used her to completely throw the others off as well.

Wyatt Halliwell was going to be destroyed.

000

With his family gathered around the great hall of Magic School, celebrating the defeat of the Game Masters, Chris could honestly say he felt lighter. They'd actually done it. They'd saved Wyatt. It was finally over, and his family had a chance to be safe and happy.

"You stabbed her?" Piper cried, listening to the story of how Phoebe had vanquished the demons by using their own power sucking athame against them only to have Paige stab her with it to get the evil powers back out of her.

Paige rolled her eyes as she poured Chris a glass of champagne. "Oh, you would have too."

Chris laughed, agreeing, "She was pretty obnoxious."

Holding up her glass to be filled next, Phoebe admitted, "Yeah, demonic powers on an empty stomach - not such a good thing."

"No, it was a great thing," Piper argued, "You saved Wyatt."

"We all did," Phoebe said.

Piper looked over to Chris, who was standing next to his father and baby Wyatt. "So, we're one-hundred percent certain these were the demons we were looking for all along?"

Chris nodded solemnly. He didn't notice how Casey, who was sitting off to his right suddenly shifted uncomfortably, her brow furrowing as though trying to remember something. He didn't notice Lucky shoot his mother a worried look.

"To our nephew," Phoebe cheered, "May he always be safe."

Everyone raised their glass in toast.

"I can't believe it's finally over," Chris breathed, still in shock.

Leo smiled proudly at him. "Believe it. You just saved the future."

Chris smiled before shooting a glance over at Casey and Lucky. He had one last thing to fix before he went home. He just wasn't sure how to do it. He leaned over to his father, whispering, "Hey, Dad, do you think you could get Lucky home for me? Take care of him? I sort of need to talk to Casey about . . . you know." He gestured vaguely. "Us."

The father gave a thin smile. "Of course I can." He put a hand to his son's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "I know this isn't going to be easy for you, but it really is for the best."

His son's eyes dropped to the floor as he nodded. If she hadn't changed her mind after all, letting go of Casey was going to hurt, but his father was right. It would be for the best, and he only wanted what was best for her and for Lucky. Steeling himself, he set down his champagne and moved over to where Casey was sitting, seemingly lost in her thoughts.

Lucky cut him off, quietly saying, "I think something's wrong with Momma. She doesn't feel quite right."

Chris' eyebrows went up, surprised at the boy's perceptiveness. He didn't know why. Lucky had made it pretty obvious how insanely intelligent and special he was. Of course he would know when his own mother was emotionally off. He squatted in front of his son. "Hey, don't worry. I'm going to try to make it better, okay? In the meantime, why don't you go hang out with your awesome grandpa?"

Lucky just nodded, though he was clearly still worried. Biting his lip, obviously debating whether to say something else, he eventually decided against it and moved over to where Leo was standing.

"Hey," Chris said to Casey, as he finally reached her.

Her eyes flicked up to his face, and she smiled weakly. "Hi."

"Listen," he started, shifting on his feet, hands buried in his pockets, "could we go somewhere and talk? I have something really important I need to tell you. Leo said he'd watch Lucky."

"Talk?" she repeated, almost numbly.

He took a breath, nodding. "Yeah. Just talk. Promise."

Casey seemed to consider the proposal a moment before downing her champagne in one gulp, firmly setting the glass down on a side table and standing. "Yeah, ok. Where do you want to go?"

"No one's at the club right now. We could use the backroom where I've been staying? That way no interruptions?"

Instead of answering him, she just held out her hand. He frowned, but took it, orbing them to the back room of P3 in a matter of moments. As soon as they reformed, Casey dropped his hand and took several steps away from him, hugging herself and looking at the floor.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"It's over," she said so quietly he almost hadn't heard her. "We'll all be going back soon."

Chris licked his lips, nodding. "Yeah, as soon as we can find a spell to get us there safely."

"I'm scared," she admitted, her voice still just a whisper. Her eyes were locked on the floor.

"You don't need to be scared. We have The Charmed Ones helping us. They'll figure it out. Don't worry."

"Not about that," she said, shaking her head. She finally looked up, her eyes locking on his. The brown orbs were pools of sorrow and confusion. "About you. You could merge with the Chris I've grown up with, or maybe when we get back it'll just be him again, and you'll just be gone, and I can't . . . I just. . ." Tears slipped off her lashes as she squeezed her eyes shut. The words came tumbling out, "I can't breathe when I think about losing you."

Chris took a deep breath, trying not to get his hopes up. "What are you saying?"

She shook her head, tears still gliding down her cheeks. " _Mierda_. I'm so confused. I thought I was over you. I thought I didn't have those feelings for you anymore, but then I get here, and you're you, but you're not you at the same time. You're stronger and calmer and you actually want me. God, why couldn't this be six years ago? Why? Do you have any idea how much I wanted this then? But now . . . now, it's too late. It has to be too late."

 _Now's your big chance. Help her make the right decision. Help her choose you once and for all_.

"Why does it have to be too late?" Chris asked, brushing her tear dampened hair from her face, cupping her small face with his hands. "Maybe this happened for a reason, Casey. Everything in my family does."

 _Yeeees, everything happens for a reason_. _Maybe this was always meant to be. You can't fight destiny. Can you live with the idea of him ceasing to exist when he's sooo in love with you, and you've continually pushed him away? You can give this man you love, this man you will lose, at least this . . . one perfect night._

Casey moved her hands to the sides of Chris' face, slowly lowering his lips to hers. Deepening the kiss, her hands slid down his neck to his chest, and she lightly pushed him backwards so he stumbled, ending up sitting on the cot. Then, she slowly, deliberately straddled him and their eyes locked.

"Casey?" he questioned, his breathing quickening with desire. He wanted to do the right thing. He wanted to make sure she was certain this time.

 _Feed the burning passion. No thoughts. Just feel the raw passion flowing between you. You can't stop. You can't fight it. You are meant to be together._

The woman gave her answer by claiming his mouth, her tongue teasing his upper lip before delving deeper. Her hands deftly unbuttoned his rust-colored dress shirt, sliding it off his shoulders and discarding the garment onto the floor before running her fingernails over the firm chest she'd exposed.

Chris let out a moan of pleasure before pulling her shirt over her head and flipping her onto her back on the bed, so he was on top. His lustful eyes raked over her, enjoying the view for a moment before she pulled him back down for another passionate kiss.

His mouth then moved to tease her throat. He smiled as he found a sensitive spot on her neck, causing her to suck in a sharp breath. Meanwhile, his hands slid up her sides and around to her back to unhook her bra, removing it from her person a moment later.

She unfastened his belt, sliding it off with one slick move and dropped it to the floor. A whimper of pleasure escaped her as his mouth moved from her throat, steadily making it's way down toward even more sensitive flesh. In retaliation, she started working on the button of his pants, smiling in satisfaction when he inhaled sharply in anticipation.

Things only became more heated from there. They explored one another thoroughly, bringing each other to new heights of pleasure, culminating in an explosive finish leaving them both spent as they lay entangled between the sheets.

Chris softly kissed her bare shoulder, sleepy in the after affects as he told her, "This was the best night of my life."

Her back was to him or he would have noticed the shine to her eyes when she replied, "Yeah?"

His eyes closing, he held her close as he confirmed, "Definitely. As much as I had fantasized about doing this with you when I was young . . . God, this was so much better than anything my fourteen year old self could imagine." He brushed the hair from her neck, kissing the revealed spot gently. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," she replied, squeezing her eyes shut, trying to stop the tears from falling.

When she felt him grow heavy against her, deep asleep, Casey carefully removed his arm from around her, gathered her clothes, dressed and went out into the club. It wouldn't be open for another hour, so she was all alone as she leaned against the wall and started to cry.

 _Your greatest fear come to fruition . . . you have betrayed Wyatt, the man you love. You are filth. Rubbish. Nothing more than an unfaithful whore. He will never forgive you. He will hate you. You have ruined everything aaaall over again. You don't deserve to be loved._

Casey slid down the wall, sobbing. Her chest was so tight she could hardly breathe. Already crushed with guilt and pain and confusion, she didn't notice how the hair framing her face had turned stark white.

TBC. . .


	14. Knockin' on Heaven's Door

Thanks to Callisto Nicol for being my steadfast reviewer. This chapter will answer the big question you had :)

Took some lines from Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad World, but it's pretty AU. What I borrowed I don't own.

Chapter 14

2004

Casey took a taxi home from the club, borrowing money from Phoebe's purse to pay the driver. She would pay the woman back as soon as she had any money to do so. She just needed to get back to the manor to check on Lucky, and she didn't want to wake Chris. She didn't want to burden him with the guilt and pain she was feeling over what they'd done. He deserved to be happy. He'd be a wreck if he knew she was upset about their night together, and it wasn't his fault. It was completely her fault.

She really was Guinevere.

Peeking her head into her son's room, she smiled softly as she spotted the child sound asleep on the bed. Knowing he was safe and content, she closed the door and walked across the hall to Piper's room where she'd been sleeping since the eldest Charmed One had moved to Magic School. She crawled over the covers and grabbed a pillow holding it tightly against her chest. She closed her eyes and felt her chest constrict painfully as new tears immediately formed and fell down her cheeks. Now she was alone, she could grieve for the life she'd just imploded.

She couldn't get Wyatt's face out of her mind. His gentle, loving blue eyes gazing down at her with total adoration and trust. The soft smile always on his face when he would stare at her when he didn't think she was looking. She couldn't stop thinking about the warmth of his muscular arms around her. The calming effect of resting her head on his big, strong chest, listening to his heartbeat. The way he could always make her laugh. How he called her Angel in their intimate moments. The way he loved her . . .

Casey choked on a sob, burying the sound in the pillow. She cried until exhaustion forced her into unconsciousness, where her dreams continued to haunt her with images of Wyatt. Every moment of their long history played before her mind. How he'd very patiently taught her to whistle when she was six and he was eight. The moment they'd been sitting in the conservatory in the manor, and she'd realized how deeply in love with her he really was even while trying to help her deal with her feelings for Chris. The night he'd found her drenched to the bone after Lucky had just been conceived, and he'd wrapped her in his dress coat and held her tight, telling her how nothing was going to hurt again - she was safe with him. How on her 21st birthday, he'd closed the club to throw her a private party and had made a fool of himself singing her favorite song to her. The time in the attic he'd once told her love was unconditional, and she could never do anything to stop his love for her.

When she woke up in the morning, she had no tears left to cry. She could only numbly think how very wrong he had been. Wyatt would never forgive her for sleeping with Chris, and she certainly would never forgive herself. Chris wouldn't forgive her either. Not when he learned the truth: He'd just betrayed his own brother. And Molly . . . oh god, Molly. The woman had already been far more forgiving than most people were even capable of being, and now, she would go back to hating Casey. Their friendship was over. Casey squeezed her eyes tighter shut. What the hell had she done?

"Momma?"

Casey looked up to find Lucky standing in the doorway, dressed and ready for school. She shot a quick look to the clock and found they only had a few minutes before they needed to be there. She roughly wiped her eyes with the palms of her hands and forced a smile to her face for her son's sake. " _Lucerito_ , good morning. I'm so sorry. I guess I over slept."

Lucky was staring at her with a horrified expression on his little face. His green eyes were clouded with fear and growing tears. He instinctively took a step back, pointing at her. "You've been hurt. Something evil hurt you real bad. It's forever."

"Lucky?" Casey asked, hurrying out of the bed and kneeling in front of her now quaking son. "What are you talking about? I'm fine. I'm not hurt."

"Evil touched you. It's still there. I can feel it." He put a hand to her chest, looking more solemn than a five year old should. "It's in here too. I can't get it out. It hurts to touch. It's cold and dark and it's super scary and old."

Casey cupped his tiny face, keeping a smile on for his sake. "Lucky, I promise, I'm not hurt. You don't need to worry about me. It's my job to worry about you not the other way around. Now, let me get ready quick, and we'll get you to school okay?"

He shook his head, reaching up and gently grabbing a strand of her hair. "You're not listening. Look."

His mother's eyes darted up to catch sight of something white. She frowned and rose to her feet, moving to the mirror. Her mouth fell open in shock, and without thinking, she reached up to touch the hair hanging by her face. It was stark white. " _Qué demonios?"_

She waved a hand, trying to glamor it back to normal, but it remained fixedly white.

"It won't work," Lucky said, looking more scared than his mother had ever seen him. "It's too strong. _Un maldito_."

Casey let out a breath and turned to her child. He looked near tears, his little face so incredibly pale. Her fears and pain could wait, so she pushed them down and focused on her child. She squatted in front of him again, gently brushing his bangs from his face and smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring manner. "It's okay. It's not as bad as it looks. It doesn't hurt, so we'll just fix it later, _bueno_? Now, have you eaten?" Off his head shake, "Okay, run downstairs and have some cereal while I get dressed. We'll go in a little bit. I'm sure someone at Magic School will know how to fix this, right?"

The child looked unconvinced but nodded and disappeared in a swirl of lights a moment later.

Too distraught to even reprimand him for not using the stairs, Casey rose to her feet and went back to the mirror. She pulled a white strand out away from her head to examine it again before letting it fall back down with a sigh. "Not a curse, Lucky. Just Magic's version of a scarlet letter."

000

2004

Chris Halliwell had woken up with a smile on his face for the first time in almost a year. Life was pretty damn good right about now. He had successfully managed to save his brother and the future. He'd just made love to the first woman he'd ever loved, and it had been so incredible part of him still couldn't believe it had really happened. He'd never felt this way before . . . hopeful and happy and actually looking forward to what the future might hold. If his luck held out, he was going to have the family he always wanted. A brother who wasn't evil, his aunts and mom still alive, a father who loved him, a son who was amazing and, maybe - just maybe - he and Casey would be able to stay together. If he could retain his memories when they got back, he could see them having the perfect future together.

Looking forward to all his new life may offer was part of the reason he'd been giving Paige such a hard time about the spell to get them home. Sure, he didn't exactly want to be around when his baby self was born for several awkward reasons, but mostly, he was excited to start his new life. Especially now he'd had a taste of what it could be like.

When his mother and father came walking out into the great hall, his mother had realized Paige had neglected to get his baby self's nursery ready, so Paige had ended up leaving to take care of that and pick up diapers. A lot of them apparently. Chris shuddered at the thought. More importantly, Piper found out the spell was risky and had insisted he and Leo work on a potion instead. If something went wrong, the potion would allow them a way back right away. So, he had brewed the potion and now, he and Leo were making preparations to try it out.

"I wonder how much different my life is going to be," Chris wondered aloud, stepping back from the triquetra he'd just drawn on the wall. "How much different _I'm_ going to be." He turned to shoot a look to Leo, explaining, "Casey told me the basics, but I still don't know who I'm going to be when I step through the portal. If I'll remember everything or just the new life. It'll be so strange to actually see how much everything has changed."

Leo smiled softly, putting a hand on his son's shoulder. "I just want you all to get home safely. Now, remember, if anything seems different, we have another vial of this to get back right away."

Chris smiled, rolling his eyes good naturedly as he shot back over his shoulder, "You worry too much, you know that? We'll be fine."

"I'm your father," Leo countered. "It's my job to worry. Now listen, when you get back there, you gotta take it easy on Wyatt, okay? You can't hold a grudge."

"Hey, as long as he's not Ruler of All Evil, I'm cool," Chris retorted, folding his arms over his chest. "Besides, Casey already told me a little about him, and he seems like he's a good guy. I'm sure we'll be fine. If he's not evil, it's not like we have any reason not to get along."

Tiny orb lights swirled in front of them forming into one Lucky Halliwell, his small face scrunched up in a deep scowl. He pointed a finger at his father. "You are in big trouble, Mister."

Chris' eyebrows shot up. There was no way his son knew he and Casey had been together, right? Even if he did, wasn't it what he'd been rooting for this whole time? Why was the kid mad at him? "Uh, hey, Lucky, good morning."

"No," Lucky shook his head, his bangs flopping into his very angry green eyes. "Not a good morning. You messed up big time."

The young father blanched. Had Casey gone home upset, and Lucky found her? Chris had assumed she'd left to go check on their son and make sure he got ready this morning. What if she left because she regretted it? He couldn't quite contain the tremor in his voice as he asked, "What are you talking about?"

"I told you something was wrong with Momma, and you didn't listen, and now she's _maldito_. You said you were gonna help her, and you didn't."

So, not about them then. Chris found himself letting out a breath he hadn't known he was holding and kneeled in front of his son. "Lucky, I don't know what you're talking about. Your mom was fine the last time I saw her. What happened?"

Leo's face suddenly drained of color, and he tapped Chris' shoulder. "Son, look."

The witchlighter lifted his head and caught sight of Casey down the hall talking to Ms. Winterbourne. Even from this distance it was easy to see the shock of white in her hair. His mouth fell open instantly understanding. A horrible, sick dread filled him. He shot a look over his shoulder at his father and asked, "Barbas?"

The Elder nodded.

Chris squeezed his eyes shut. The Demon of Fear had attacked Casey and left his mark on her. When? Why hadn't she called for him? He would find out. He rose to his feet, looking down at Lucky. "I know what happened to your mom, Lucky, and I swear, I really will fix it this time, okay?"

"You better," Lucky griped. He put two fingers up to his eyes before pointing sharply at Chris. His little brow was still all furrowed.

The young father realized his son meant business. He slid a glance to Leo who nodded silent permission to go check on Casey - he would watch Lucky. Knowing his son was covered, Chris hurried down the hall toward Casey who flushed as soon as she saw him, smiling awkwardly.

"Good morning," she greeted softly.

Chris' face was harsh as he took in the sight of her. He felt his blood heat with anger as he realized what had been done to the woman he loved. His voice was low and hard as he questioned, "When did he attack you? Why didn't you call for me?"

"Who attacked me?" she asked, her eyes reflecting genuine confusion. "What are you talking about?"

She had no idea she'd been attacked. How was that possible? When had it happened that she hadn't realized Barbas was terrorizing her? He'd been with her nearly all day yesterday, and her hair had been normal. It had to have happened sometime last night after they . . . oh no. His face fell, a painful twist in his chest as he realized the truth. "You said you were scared. Oh god, you told me you couldn't breathe you were so scared . . ."

The tiny woman hugged herself, looking down at the ground. "I still am. I don't want to lose you." She looked up at him, her eyes soft with love, but he didn't miss the pain just under the surface. "I wanted to be with you. I did, and it was incredible. You were incredible, Chris, but . . ."

"You regret it," he finished for her, his stomach dropping.

"I shouldn't have let it happen," she explained. Tears were fully forming now, threatening to spill. "You did nothing wrong. I swear. You didn't know any better, but I did. I betrayed the people we love. I'm a cheater - an unfaithful, horrible, dirty-"

Chris took her by the arms shaking her lightly, forcing her to look at him. "-Hey, stop it. You are none of those things, and I can prove it." He reached up, gently twisting her white hair around one of his fingers. "This is proof. You weren't in your right mind, and I am so sorry, Case. If I had even had the slightest idea, I never would have laid a hand on you - I swear."

She frowned at him, confused. "I was in my right mind, Chris. I wanted to be with you. God help me, I'm falling in love with you all over again, and I couldn't stand the idea of you - this version of you - disappearing without my having shown you how much I love you."

"Maybe that's true. Maybe you really do love me," Chris said sadly, "but I don't think you would've have acted on it if he hadn't been manipulating your feelings."

"Who?"

"Barbas," Chris answered. "He fed on your fear of losing me - enhanced it. It's why your hair is white. He nearly scared you to death."

Casey shook her head in denial, but he could see a glimmer of recognition in her eyes. "No, that's not why. That's not . . . Why would he do it? I thought his schtick was scaring people to death. Why would he just scare me into giving into my feelings for you? How does that benefit him?"

Chris frowned a moment before guessing, "Lucky? Maybe he knows about his destiny and wanted us distracted? With everyone so busy with Wyatt, our distraction would leave him vulnerable."

"Then he's still in danger," Casey said, looking panicked.

"We have the potion ready. I think we need to try it. Get us all home before Barbas can do anything else."

"What about your family? Won't he go after them?"

"They can handle Barbas – they've done it before." When she looked doubtful, he reached up to gently cup her face, lightly brushing his thumb over her jawline. "My concern is you and Lucky. I'm not going to let anything happen to you two. Now, let's go."

Chris took her hand, gently pulling her back into the main hall toward where Leo and Lucky were standing and talking. Leo shot a worried look to his son and the young woman before putting a small smile on his face for Lucky's sake. He asked, trying to keep his voice light, "Everything okay?"

"We think Barbas' real target is Lucky," Chris answered. "We need to get Lucky back home before Barbas does any more damage. Lucky's destiny is too important to take any chances. Can you get Phoebe and Paige? I'll go let Mom know."

Fifteen minutes later, the entire family was gathered in the Great Hall of Magic School, ready to say goodbye to their son and nephew and his little family. Oddly enough, Gideon wasn't there to send them off. Leo hadn't been able to find his mentor to let him know.

Chris had warned them about Barbas, but now the time was here for him to leave, he was starting to worry. Maybe they should stay and help vanquish Barbas first, but he was worried about Casey and Lucky. The demon had gotten to her once already, and he couldn't risk his son.

Phoebe, noticing his hesitation, smiled reassuringly. "It's okay. We've dealt with Barbas many times before. We'll be fine." She moved toward him taking his hands. "You just go back to that beautiful, peaceful world you helped create." She hugged him tightly, finishing, "I'm really gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you too," he replied softly.

As Phoebe moved to hug Casey and Lucky, Paige moved in front of Chris, looking a bit misty eyed as she tried to joke, "Aw, here comes the huggin' part."

Chris smiled for her effort, pulling her into a hug. As they parted, his eyes turned to his mother, and he felt a lump forming his throat at the idea of saying goodbye to her. He knew Casey said she was alive in the new future, but part of him couldn't help but fear losing her all over again.

Piper, sensing his distress, moved to him, wrapping him in her arms and lovingly stroking his hair in reassurance. Her voice nearly broke as she told him, "Thank you for coming here. I love you."

"I love you so much, Mom," he replied back, squeezing his eyes shut against the wave of emotion hitting him. He held her just a moment longer, wanting to remember this moment.

His mother finally pulled away, fighting back tears as she gestured for him to go. "Now, go on. Hurry. You be safe."

Chris turned from her and moved in front of his brother, who was sitting in his stroller looking confused by the whole proceeding. He smiled at the toddler. "You be good."

Little Wyatt smiled as though to say, "Of course."

Leo put a hand on Chris' shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll make sure they don't remember anything about Casey or Lucky. We can't risk accidentally erasing my grandson after all." Chris nodded, a small smile forming. Leo couldn't help but notice how nervous his son suddenly looked now the moment had arrived. He added softly, "Everything is going to be fine. I promise."

Surprising both of them, Chris hugged his father. "Thanks, Dad."

Lucky rolled his eyes. "We're gonna see them in a minute. Sheesh. What's the big deal?"

The adults couldn't help but laugh. Leave it to the five year old to put things in perspective. After all, it was true. They would be together again in about twenty-three years. It just felt hard to say goodbye until then.

"All right," Leo said, pulling out the potion. "Here we go."

Winding up like a baseball pitcher, Leo hurled the potion toward the triquetra Chris had drawn on the wall earlier. The vial broke but nothing happened. Leo frowned and folded his arms at the exact same time his son did. They both let out a disappointed sigh. "That should have worked."

Lucky's green eyes flashed golden, and his tiny brows scrunched together. When his eyes returned to their jade color, he was looking over by the wall. "The bad man was here. He used magic so we couldn't see him."

"Who?" Casey asked.

"The bad man," Lucky repeated with total irritation as though it were obvious.

Chris shook his head. "Barbas can't enter magic school, Buddy. He's a demon."

Lucky looked at him like he was an idiot. "No. Not a demon. Gideon. He's a bad man." He turned to his mom. "Remember? You thought so too."

"I did?"

The little boy nodded. "You were going to talk to Dad about it yesterday. How he always looks at me and Uncle Wyatt funny. How he thinks bad things about us. How come you don't remember? You were gonna tell Dad you thought he was the one who wanted to hurt Uncle Wyatt."

Phoebe frowned, something coming together in her mind. "It's a better fit for my theory. Someone we know and care about. He was pretty angry about my theory about the person after Wyatt being someone we know. Maybe it was because it was him all along."

Leo shook his head, waving his hands. "No. This is impossible. Gideon is a friend of mine. He's my mentor. He would never do anything to hurt our family. He's been trying to help us. Besides, why would he want to hurt Wyatt? He's good."

"In my timeline he's good," Casey argued. "Knowing Wyatt could be turned evil like in Chris' world . . . maybe Gideon thought he was too powerful to take the risk. Wanted to permanently take away the option. After all, he's not in your lives in my future. None of you ever even mentioned him to me."

Chris, who had moved over to where their potion vial had fallen, squatted down to examine it. The first thing he noticed was the bottle had fallen a good three inches or more from the wall. None of the potion had even touched the triquetra he'd drawn - not even a splash. The second thing he noticed was the little trail of blood droplets starting at the broken glass and leading out of the room. He looked up to his father. "Someone definitely stopped this vial. Cut themselves doing it."

"Lucky was right," Paige decided. "It all fits. After all, where is he?"

Piper started breathing more heavily, getting upset. She gestured wildly as her temper flared. "An Elder? An Elder is after my son? Are you freaking kidding me right now?"

Phoebe rushed to her sister's side, gently rubbing her stomach. "Piper, you need to calm down before . . ."

The oldest Charmed One's water broke.

". . .you go into labor," Phoebe finished. She pulled a face. "Well, so much for that. Okay, sweetie, we need to get you to the hospital. Paige, a little help here?"

As the youngest sister rushed to their side, Piper waved her off. "I can't go now. Barbas is on the loose, a psychotic elder is after my kid, and we still don't know how to get those three home."

Leo moved to his ex-wife's side, cupping her face in his hands, locking eyes with her, trying to feed her strength and calm. "You take care of yourself and Baby Chris. I promise I will protect our other boys. Now, you have to go, Piper."

Letting out a defeated breath, the petite woman relented, "Fine, but swear to me you won't let anything happen to our family. Please."

"I promise."

Paige looked to Leo and Chris. "Meet us back in the manor, so we can check the book and figure out how to stop him. We'll be there as soon as we can."

The men nodded agreement and the sisters disappeared in a swirl of orb lights. Leo took hold of Wyatt's stroller while Chris took Casey's hand, who held Lucky's hand. Shooting a look to Leo, they all disappeared in a swirl of orbs to reappear in the attic a moment later. Once they had reformed, Chris immediately headed for the book, not sure what he was looking for but hoping inspiration would hit anyway.

"One thing that doesn't make sense - we were convinced it was the Game Masters," Leo said, as he put Wyatt in his playpen and started pacing across the squeaky floorboard. "If Gideon is after Wyatt, why risk exposing himself by tampering with the potion? Why not just let you three go home?"

"He wants Lucky out of the way too," Chris realized. "He's almost as powerful as Wyatt. He couldn't let us go home because it would put Lucky out of his reach. He's going to try to kill them both."

Leo shook his head, a dark and dangerous look on his face. "No, he won't because I'm going to find him first. Will you be okay watching Wyatt?"

"Absolutely," Chris said solemnly. "I didn't come all the way from the future just to lose him now, all right?"

The Elder nodded before orbing out.

"Stay where we can see you, _Lucerito_ ," Casey ordered Lucky, pointing to the couch where he begrudgingly took a seat. She moved over to the table and pulled out the amethyst crystal and started scrying, concentrating on trying to find the Elder while Chris searched the book for any spell that may protect them or stop an Elder.

As the two parents worked in tandem trying to find a way to save their son and Wyatt, they both lifted their heads as the floorboard suddenly creaked. Chris' eyes locked with Casey's noting neither she nor Lucky had moved from their seated positions. He immediately turned to Lucky, ordering, "Orb out."

Just as Lucky started to comply with his father's command, something scattered his orbs and the small boy was hurled across the room, his tiny body hitting the wall with a sick thump. He fell to the floor with a crash, completely unmoving.

Chris rushed to his son's side as he heard Casey give a heartbreaking scream in the form of her son's name. He had just reached the unconscious child when suddenly he felt himself lifted and hurled backward through the air. He came to a hard stop as he crashed onto a wooden table, hitting with enough force it broke into pieces under him. Struggling to look up, he spotted Casey on her knees by Lucky trying to coax the boy back to consciousness. Then he saw Gideon standing over Wyatt.

"Don't make me sacrifice all of you," Gideon warned.

As the Elder turned to pick up Wyatt, Chris flung out his arm, telekinetically hurtling Gideon backwards across the room. The Elder slid to a stop on the floor, his eyes narrowed with rage. Chris saw the glint of an athame right before Gideon disappeared into the air. He knew Gideon wasn't gone. He knew the man wouldn't stop until he had Wyatt and Lucky. Chris struggled to get to his feet, pain ripping through his back and legs from his hard fall. He had to get to Wyatt.

Casey was faster. She was already on her feet running toward Wyatt, hoping if nothing else she could grab him and get back to Lucky and Chris, and they could orb out together. Mostly, she just knew she had to save Wyatt. She couldn't let anything hurt him. Only she didn't make it to the playpen. Gideon reappeared in front of her and suddenly a sharp pain ripped through her abdomen. Ice filled her veins as she looked down and saw an athame plunged deep into her own flesh. As mortal panic set in, the ice was suddenly replaced by fire, burning her from within with fear and pain. Such an intense pain washed over her, she could only manage a small gasp before she sunk to the floor.

"No! Dad, help!" Chris cried, scrambling the rest of the way to his feet. He skidded to a stop to catch Casey, nearly falling with her as they sunk to the floor, the dying woman in his arms. He looked up through tear filled eyes just as Gideon grabbed Wyatt and orbed over to Lucky. He turned his head in time to see the Elder put a hand on the young boy and with an almost a regretful look, Gideon told Chris, "It's for the best."

Then, he was gone.

Nearly paralyzed by his emotions, Chris couldn't move, couldn't think. He could only look down on Casey, her face horribly pale already as she struggled to keep her eyes open. He swallowed thickly, having difficulty breathing as he felt and saw her blood starting to pool around them. Just like last time. His voice cracked as he begged her, "Please, don't do this to me again. Please. Please, I love you, don't leave me like this. Please, Casey, please." He looked up to the ceiling, screaming, "Dad! Help!"

"I . . ." Casey tried to talk, the effort bringing a wince of pain. ". . .so sorry."

He couldn't stop the tears from falling as he lovingly stroked her face. Her skin was already growing colder despite the beads of sweat forming on her brow. His chest constricted painfully. "It's ok. You're going to be okay. Dad's going to come this time, and we're going to get Wyatt and Lucky back. Just hold on, okay?"

"Not your fault," she struggled to get out. "I love you. Tell Lucky I love him so much. Take care of him. Tell Wyatt I . . ." Her eyes drifted shut as unconsciousness claimed her.

Orb lights formed in the attic taking the shape of one terrified Leo Wyatt, who immediately dropped next to Chris, trying to heal Casey. Nothing happened. Just as he was about to ask Chris what had happened, he noticed a strange golden light surrounding his son.

At the same time, Chris began to feel the most excruciating pain of his life rip through him. He couldn't stop the blood curdling scream that left him. He felt like he was being torn apart from the inside out. The golden light surrounding him suddenly shot outward temporarily blinding Leo, who had to put his hand over his eyes. Suddenly, the light was gone, and Chris was propelled backward away from Casey, falling hard on his side on the floor by the Book of Shadows. He moaned in pain and squeezed his eyes tighter shut at the pounding pain in his head. When he finally reopened his eyes, he frowned as he looked around the attic. He caught sight of Leo and asked, "How did I get here? Dad, what's going on? Where's Molly?"

Before Leo could answer, another pained moan drew their attention. Kneeling next to Casey was a semi- transparent man, grabbing his head as though in pain. When he turned around to face Leo, the Elder gasped, unable to believe his eyes.

Chris' mouth fell open as he saw the third man's face. "What the hell? Is that . . . me?"

000

2026

Molly couldn't believe how stupid she had been. Lucky had told her exactly what would happen to Chris, and she hadn't understood. She hadn't comprehended his warning to her all those years ago. Only now, replaying his visit, she finally grasped what he'd been telling her.

 _"Do you have any idea_ _how complicated the future was to begin with?" Sixteen year old Lucky Halliwell griped. "My mother was married to my uncle. My father was married to my whitelighter. It was dingo ate my baby weird, but completely okay at the same time. Sort of. I mean, personally, I hate Uncle Wyatt, but that's not because he didn't love mom or even me. Just. . .his priorities really suck. You know? Of course you do, I said all that before - About mom. How he just let her go like he was powerless to stop it."_

 _"Was he?"_

 _"No," Lucky said firmly, "which was totally proven by Perry."_

 _"Who?"_

 _"Another brilliant mistake by dear Uncle Wyatt, but this one somehow comes around to bite him in the ass."_

 _Molly frowned. "I don't understand."_

 _"You wouldn't. It doesn't happen yet." Lucky ran a hand through his hair. "God, I don't even know what to wish for at this point. Perry in our lives is both a blessing and a curse. He's not supposed to be there. He was supposed to cease to exist. Die for all intents and purposes, but now he's here. There. My time. You follow me?"_

 _"Not even a little."_

 _"Uncle Wyatt was never my favorite person, but now? It's a mess. Everything is a mess all over again. Except for Mom. She's alive now, but everything is all wrong. Get me? It's not the way it was supposed to be."_

Molly had forgotten Lucky told her a man named Perry would be coming into their lives. A man who wasn't supposed to exist. Who existed because Wyatt made a mistake and Casey accidentally changed the past. She hadn't realized who Perry was. She should have. She should have known as soon as they'd talked to the Angel of Destiny.

 _The Angel sighed, irritated at being interrupted. "You were wrong. . .about the baby being the same. They're not. They were two different spirits with completely differing destinies. Much like when you met your versions in the parallel dimension – similar looks, thoughts, instincts, but still very different beings. Therefore, in order to fix everything, we had to summon the other Chris' essence – not an easy feat even for us. Luckily, an Angel of Death was able to help us locate him. Then, we had to erase his memories of his first journey and subsequent death and place his essence inside your version, which was a delicate process. It had to be a slow transfer in order to avoid destroying one or both of them. As I'm sure you noticed, toward the end, he was becoming ever more like the original version. When we finished the transfer, we sent him back to the past where the original version is in full control."_

 _"Wait," Prue cut in, "you're saying his spirit was out there somewhere this whole time? Why wasn't he allowed to move on?"_

 _"His destiny was incomplete," The Angel replied simply._

 _Molly softly questioned, "What is his – or their – destiny then?"_

 _"Now someone is asking the right question," the Angel commented, appreciatively. "Your Chris' destiny was to father Lucky – the reincarnation of Sir Galahad and the truest knight of Wyatt's and Arthur's roundtable. He and his son will both play a key role in the success of the new Camelot. He is not destined to die."_

 _"And my other son?" Piper asked, vindicated in her belief that she'd always had three._

 _"I do not have an answer regarding the other Christopher as events have been set in motion which split the future too many ways. I cannot see the outcome. He has complicated his destiny beyond even my sight."_

"Oh my God," Molly breathed, the truth of it all hitting her hard.

Wyatt rose from the sofa moving to her side, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Molly? What's wrong?"

"There are two of them," she breathed. She looked up at Wyatt, still too shocked to explain it all efficiently. "I can't believe it."

The Twice Blessed shook his head. "Can't believe what? You're not making any sense, Molly."

Kip was leaning against the kitchen counter, watching the scene with mild interest until he inadvertently picked up on one of Molly's stray thoughts. He blinked dumbly. "Two Chrises? What does that mean?"

Wyatt's mouth fell open, starting to understand. Lancelot and Merlin. Two destinies. The Chris who traveled to the past to save him hadn't been reborn into the brother he'd grown up with. They were different people. He met Molly's shocked face and questioned, "They aren't going to merge are they? When Chris returns . . . there will be two of him?"

She nodded. "I don't know how, Wyatt, but yes. I didn't understand when Lucky told me a man named Perry would be coming into our lives, but it fits. Get it? Christopher _Perry_ Halliwell. We must call him by his middle name to keep them straight."

"I can't believe this," Wyatt breathed, struggling to comprehend. "It doesn't make sense. No one should be able to exist in the same plane as their counterpart. It would tip the balance or cause some sort of rift or _something_. It's not possible. Besides, Dad said he faded away. He ceased to exist when the new timeline was created."

Molly shrugged, not having the answers he wanted. "I don't know. Something must have changed."

Wyatt was about to ask what could've changed when he suddenly felt himself get pulled inward into a vision. A second later an image of Casey popped into his mind. Her eyes were closed as she looked so horrifyingly pale. A dagger was piercing her stomach, blood seeping out of the wound. As he came to, he staggered, only staying upright as Molly and Kip both grabbed an arm. He couldn't breathe. There was a sharp ripping pain in his chest - like his heart was literally breaking. Tears formed in his eyes as he realized what he was feeling. He turned to Molly, fear and despair in his eyes as he explained, "Casey's dying. Oh God, Molly, I think she took his place."

TBC . . .


	15. Betrayed

Thanks so much to all the wonderful reviewers for the last chapter: Guest reviewer (Hopefully, I can explain my crazy mind a bit next chapter), Anthony, sise87 and Callisto Nicol.

Chapter 15

2004

Chris Halliwell was not a man easily shocked. He was generally very good at thinking on his feet, solving puzzles, and adapting. He supposed a lot of it had to do with growing up a Halliwell. The strange and impossible happened all the time, so he'd learned to expect the unexpected. So when he inexplicably woke up in the attic of the manor when his last memory had been of proposing to Molly in Golden Gate Park, he hadn't been too concerned. He could have been summoned after all. When he saw his father looking a good twenty years younger, he imagined it was a spell gone wrong or even a glamour. It wasn't until he saw a mirror image of himself kneeling on the opposite side of the attic that his rational mind stopped being able to come up with easy explanations. Even then, the shock only lasted the length of time it took him to ask, "What the hell? Is that . . . me?"

The other Chris didn't seem to be faring very well. The guy was almost see-through, and the pained expression on his face seemed to indicate something truly terrible had just happened. Chris vaguely wondered if he was dead and just didn't realize it. He looked down at his own hands and noted with some relief he was solid. He looked back up at the other man again. Maybe it was an astral form? He'd never astral projected before, but who's to say it couldn't happen? After all, he was a telekinetic like his Aunt Prue.

"Chris," Leo worriedly addressed the ghostly version of himself, "son, what's happening?"

The other him looked only vaguely concerned as he stared at his transparent hands and answered, "I think I'm ceasing to exist . . . again."

Chris frowned not understanding that in the least. He was about to demand someone explain what was going on, but it was at that time he spotted a dark pool of red growing wider just behind his ghostly self. His eyes followed the trail and his breath caught at the sight they found. His heart stopped painfully. "Casey?"

He scrambled to his feet only to slide down next to his friend's very pale face. He looked her over and found a large wound in her upper abdomen, which was bleeding profusely. His eyes darted back up to her face to find her eyes closed as a deathly pallor covered her features. He shook his head, tears forming. His hand went to her face, and he almost recoiled at how cold she already felt. "Oh god. No, no, no. Case, babe, you can't do this to Lucky. You fight damn it. Do not do this to our son, you hear me?"

Her brown eyes fluttered open with agonizing effort. She offered a smile that came out more like a wince. "Yeah . . . I hear ya. Missed you."

"What do you mean you missed me? You saw me this morning. What happened to you?"

Her eyelids were struggling to stay open. "Sorta got . . . a little stabbed."

"What!?"

The woman winced. "Don't yell at me I'm dying."

"No, you're not," Chris responded firmly. He looked up at the ceiling, screaming, "Wyatt! Molly!"

"Chris," Leo said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder, "you're not in your time. You, Casey and Lucky are in the past. Besides, I've already tried healing her . . . it's not working."

Just as he was about to question his father on what he'd said, the transparent version of himself let out a pained cry and flashed golden, falling forward onto his hands. When the golden light subsided, he wasn't transparent anymore, but his face was twisted in pain, and he was struggling to breathe, taking erratic, gasping inhalations. His hair was suddenly streaked with white.

Leo turned to his fallen son, trying to help him back up. "Chris? What's happening? Are you hurt?"

The man he was addressing looked down at his hands, a confused look on his face. A little bolt of electricity jumped from one hand to the other. His eyebrows went up to his hairline. "That's new."

Casey's eyes locked on the formerly transparent Chris', and she fought to say, "Lucky . . . please, save him." When he gave her a solemn nod, she allowed her eyes to close, slowly drifting back into unconsciousness.

As the Chris with the white streaks in his hair rose to his feet with Leo's help, his counterpart felt fresh, raw panic wash over him as he realized the implication of his friend's words. He stared down his counterpart asking sharply, "What happened to Lucky? Where is my son?"

"I don't have time for this," the other Chris snapped with an annoyed glower.

Chris rose to his feet so he was level with the other version of himself and returned the irritated look with a heated glare. "My best friend is bleeding to death, and my son is apparently in danger. Make the damn time."

Instead of answering him, the other man turned to their father. "Dad, do not let her die while I'm gone."

"Gone? Where are you going?" Leo asked, instantly worried.

"I'm going after Gideon. His magic did this. He can fix it."

Leo shook his head. "He's one of the most powerful elders. How are you going to find him? What are you going to do if you find him?"

"It's no coincidence Barbas targeted Casey. I'm willing to bet he and Gideon are working together, which means they're somewhere down in the underworld, which means I have the best chance of finding them."

The father looked increasingly concerned, fear for his son twisting his stomach into knots. "Chris, no. He's too powerful. You can't take him on. Not alone. Let me go get the sisters."

"She's dying, Leo," he snapped angrily, gesturing toward Casey. "Not to mention Lucky and Wyatt are both in danger. There's no time. I came here to save the future, and that's what I plan to do."

Before Leo could protest, his son went up in a swirl of lights, disappearing from the attic. Feeling more helpless than he had in a very long time, Leo turned to his other son, who was looking angry, scared and confused.

The remaining Chris folded his arms over his chest, staring down his father with biting green eyes. "Dad, you need to tell me what the hell is going on right now."

Leo let out a deep breath. "Well, it's a bit of a complicated story. . ."

000

Barbas' lair looked much like any other cavern in the underworld. Cold and dark with a few supplies on a table for dark rituals and other twisted magics. The Demon of Fear was slowly pacing back and forth across the large space. The Elder had asked for his help distracting the sisters while he made a move for the boy - Wyatt. Barbas had no interest in destroying the child though. Not physically anyway. He did want the other one though - Lucky - they called him. If left unchecked, he could become quite troublesome even if Barbas' plan to turn the Twice Blessed evil succeeded. He agreed to help the Elder for this reason.

He'd used the complications the eldest sister was having with the birth of her son to paralyze the other two sisters with the fear of losing their sibling and nephew. He'd left them completely trapped in their own minds nearly twenty minutes ago and returned here to meet with the Elder.

Just as he was about to lose what little patience he had left, Barbas caught sight of the horrid little lights signaling the elder's arrival. He had both children with him. As Gideon put Wyatt down on the ground next to the unconscious boy, Barbas drawled, "Well, finally. Let's get this thing over with."

Gideon backed away from the boys slowly, looking nervous. "Not so fast. This will take some thinking."

Barbas smirked. "How cute: The great big Elder's afraid of the teeny-weeny-itsy-bitsy babies."

"Oh, they are much more than that," Gideon argued, eyeing them warily.

Annoyed, Barbas grabbed an athame off the table. He shook his head, making a tsking noise as he sauntered over to the children. "Why is it that every time you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself?"

He quickly turned toward the boys moving to stab Wyatt, but the boy was faster, orbing both he and Lucky out of the cavern causing Barbas to fall on his stomach to the ground. Barbas looked back over at the elder. "Slippery little devil, isn't he? You didn't tell me that he could orb."

"I didn't know he could," Gideon growled. "That's why I wanted to be careful. Although, I doubt he's able to orb out of the underworld. Even he's not that powerful yet. We'll need to work together to find them quickly, though. If the older boy wakes up, he could easily orb them back to the Charmed Ones."

"Well, then, you track him with his orbs. I'm going to, uh . . ." He licked his finger, holding it up. He took a deep breath, sniffing the air. ". . . Track him with his fears.

000

2026

Wyatt was frantically flipping through the Book of Shadows, wishing he had Chris' ability to telekinetically search the book. He felt like his hands just weren't moving fast enough. The woman he loved was dying, and unless he could find a way to get to her or to bring her back to the present, he'd be powerless to stop it. The thought caused the room to start to quake. The sky outside darkened dramatically.

They had dropped Kip off at Magic School to search through the time travel section of the library for them while Wyatt and Molly came to the Manor to dig through the Book of Shadows for answers; however, right now, Molly was wishing Kip was here. Maybe he could do something to calm down the Twice Blessed. Ever since they left Wyatt's apartment, the man hadn't been himself. He was normally the calm, rational one in a crises, while Chris was driven by emotion and impulse. It was why they'd always been such a great team – they balanced each other.

"Wyatt, is there something specific you're trying to find?" Molly softly asked.

The Twice Blessed didn't look up. He just kept flipping the pages. "I know the family had a plan to heal Chris if this happened to him. I just need to figure out a way to get her here before . . ." He swallowed thickly. His voice dropped lower, "I will not lose her, Molly."

The sky gave a deafening crack of thunder, making Molly jump. She licked her lips nervously as she slowly moved toward him. She cautiously put her hands on the Book of Shadows, forcing the man to pause in his frantic search. When he looked up at her, his normally cerulean eyes were almost navy colored, so clouded with dark emotions Molly actually took a step back from him. Her voice didn't come out nearly as confident as she wanted when she told him, "You need to talk to me. Together we can figure this out, Wyatt. I promise."

"Figure what out?" Piper's worried voice floated into the room. She caught the look on her son's face and her heart nearly broke. "Sweetie, what's wrong?"

Wyatt winced, dropping his eyes back to the book. He couldn't bring himself to say the words. He was having a hard time keeping control of his emotions, and his powers were already affecting the weather. He was worried at this rate he'd flood San Francisco.

"Casey took Chris' place," Molly answered in his stead. "Gideon stabbed her. Wyatt's trying to find a way to get her here, so he can heal her."

Piper absorbed the information quickly, taking a deep breath to push back the warring feelings of relief her baby boy was actually safe from the elder and the deep fear and concern for the girl who'd been like a daughter to her – the mother of her grandson. Once she had a tight rein on her feelings, she moved further into the room toward the Book of Shadows. Gently shooing Wyatt to the side, she flipped a few pages until she found the page she wanted. She pointed to the page. "Spell to return to your own time. We can mix this with the one to call a lost witch."

Wyatt stared at the spell contemplating what his mother was suggesting. "That may actually work. It's going to take a lot of power though. Could you get the aunts just in case? I don't want to take any chances."

Piper moved a hand to her son's arm. "Don't worry, honey. We're not losing her. She and Chris and Lucky will all be home soon - safe and sound. This nightmare is almost over. Just hang on a little longer, okay?"

Her grown son nodded, fighting with his emotions. His voice came out choked as he said, "Okay, Mom."

000

Gideon called out in Leo's voice, "Wyatt? Wyatt? Can you hear me? It's daddy. Wyatt? Wyatt, can you hear me? It's daddy."

Wyatt orbed in with Lucky, who was just starting to stir. Before Lucky was able to open his eyes to see where they were, five crystals orbed around he and Wyatt, trapping them in a crystal cage. Blinking slowly, trying to adjust to the darkness of the cavern, Lucky was finally able to see his baby Uncle standing next to him looking for someone.

Gideon stepped out of the shadows and started moving steadily toward them. As he reached their side, he glanced upward calling out, "Barbas, where are you? Barbas, it's time."

Barbas appeared, walking calmly over toward the elder. He drawled, annoyed, "Took you long enough."

"Your impatience is growing tiresome," Gideon snapped. He held up an athame. "I blessed it already. Now, it's your turn." As Barbas took the blade but merely looked at it, Gideon frowned. "Is something wrong?"

Barbas tilted his head to the side regarding him with a sneer as he replied, "As a matter of fact there is."

Moving swiftly, Barbas stabbed Gideon, who cried out in agony and shock. He asked in a pained gasp, "Why?"

The demon morphed into Chris, whose green eyes held a lethal glint. "You came after my kid. You created the monster my brother became in my world, and you may have cost me a second chance with the woman I love." He flung out his hand, sending Gideon hurtling back into a separate chamber against a far wall.

"Go Dad!" Lucky cheered, now up on his feet in the cage.

Chris turned to look back at him. "I'll be right back, Lucky."

The young man marched over to the fallen elder and picked him up, shoving him roughly against the wall. At the same time, the real Barbas flamed in behind some rocks watching with mild interest. He saw the older boy was awake and trying to see the action from his place in the other part of the cavern. The elder's plan had failed. Both boys would live. The Demon of Fear made a disgusted face. He'd have to deal with Lucky Halliwell in the future . . . He flamed away.

Gideon, practically quaking, begged, "Please, Chris, you have to understand. I am only doing this for the greater good. I'm an Elder. It's what we do. By the looks of it, you too will learn that in time."

Not understanding what the man was implying, Chris replied coldly, "I am nothing like you." As if to prove the point, he threw the man roughly to the floor.

"You came here to stop Wyatt from becoming evil and destroying the world. Let me finish what I started," Gideon begged him. "Let me help you save the future - the only way it can be saved."

Chris shook his head in anger and disgust. "You're the reason the future's threatened. Not my brother. I'm going to make sure you can't hurt anyone else ever again."

Summoning a power he'd never had before, Chris's eyes glowed white. He raised both arms, his palms facing out toward the elder. A flashing, crackling stream of electricity flowed from his hands toward Gideon, who instantly cried out in pain as the volts burned him alive. Chris didn't stop until the elder had stopped breathing. As Gideon slumped over dead, Chris lowered his hands and turned his back on the body. For the first time in his life, he felt no regret at taking a life.

The young man moved over to the two boys, kicking aside one of the crystals and kneeling down as Lucky jumped into his arms, wrapping his little arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. The child's voice was muffled against his shoulder as he said, "I knew you'd save us and get the bad man. I knew it."

Chris closed his eyes against the wave of emotions suddenly hitting him. Gratitude his son was safe and mostly unharmed. Intense, unconditional love for this little boy who had all the faith in the world his dad would stop the bad man. Fear and immense sorrow for what Lucky may have to go through next if they didn't find a way to save Casey.

To his utter astonishment, as Chris held the small boy, his hands suddenly grew warm and began to softly glow with a golden light. The cut on the side of Lucky's head from when he'd been thrown against the wall instantly healed. Two new powers in one day? Something very strange was happening . . . he wished he had time to figure out what, but he needed to get the boys out of here.

Taking Wyatt's hand and still having Lucky wrapped around his neck, Chris orbed them back to the manor. No sooner had they formed then orb lights lit the conservatory forming into the other version of Chris who immediately ran to his son, grabbing him from his counterpart and holding him tightly. When he released the boy, he examined Lucky with the critical eye of a parent before finally letting out a breath of relief. "Thank god you're okay."

Lucky, for his part, frowned in confusion. He looked from one version of Chris to the other. He finally looked at the Chris with the white streaks in his hair and asked, "You're not really my dad, are you? You feel different now."

Feeling a stab of hurt, the man he addressed dropped his eyes to the floor, answering sadly, "No. I'm not."

Sensing he'd hurt the man's feelings, Lucky smiled up at him, offering brightly, "You're still really cool though." His tiny brow creased, suddenly thinking of something. "What do I call you?"

"Perry," he answered. Off his counterpart's quirked brow, "Well, we can't both be Chris, and you don't strike me as being able to answer to anything but your real name."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Chris wondered, irritated.

Ignoring the question, Perry glanced down at Lucky then back to Chris purposely asking vaguely, "How are things here? Any improvement?"

The irritation on Chris' face instantly fell to sorrow as he shook his head in the negative.

"Chris!" Leo's voice cried out.

Chris and Perry exchanged panicked looks before simultaneously telling Lucky to wait there for them before orbing up to Piper's bedroom where Casey was lying on the bed. As the men materialized, the first thing they noticed was Leo's horrified expression. Then, they saw what was causing it. Casey's body was starting to fade away.

Lucky's mother was ceasing to exist.

000

2026

As Wyatt ground the rosemary, cyprus and yarrow root in the silver mortar, blessed with a drop of his blood, he and the Charmed Ones began chanting, "A time for everything, and to everything its place. Return what has been moved through time and space."

All of the witches looked up, holding anxious breaths waiting to see if the spell was going to work. Leo and Molly shot concerned looks to each other before glancing nervously around the attic for some sign the magic was working. After several horrible minutes, four sets of golden lights began swirling in the attic forming into Chris, Perry, Lucky and Casey, who appeared semi-transparent on the floor.

Chris immediately grabbed his son, turning him away from the image of his mother. His eyes sought out his father's, who was the only adult in the room not completely flabbergasted by the situation. "Dad, get him out of here, please."

Leo immediately took Lucky into his arms, hurrying out of the room despite the child's very loud protest that he wanted to know what was going on. Everyone's heart broke as they heard him cry out, "But Momma's hurt. I can feel it. Let me go!"

Wyatt was already at Casey's side, his hands glowing with golden healing. His face was filled with desperation, his eyes burning with tears he wouldn't let fall yet, as he watched the wound stubbornly refuse to heal. His voice was raw with emotion as he begged, "Come on heal."

Paige knelt down by his side, moving a vial up to the dying woman's mouth. She carefully poured the contents down Casey's throat, tapping her neck to make sure she swallowed it. Her brown eyes were misty as she stared down at the girl's wound, which remained unchanged. She muttered angrily, "Work, damn it."

As though in response to her command, the wound slowly started to respond to Wyatt's healing. The Twice Blessed let out a relieved breath as it eventually disappeared, her body solidifying again. However, even with the wound gone, the woman's eyes remained closed. He moved a hand to her face, stroking it lovingly. "I need you to wake up now. Please, Angel, open your eyes for me."

Perry, who'd been watching the scene with anxious fear, first felt relief as the fatal wound disappeared then a sharp, painful knot form in his stomach. The way Wyatt was holding her, touching her . . . the nickname. He shook his head almost imperceptibly. It couldn't be . . .

With a deep, gasping breath, Casey's eyes suddenly fluttered open. The first thing she saw was Wyatt's loving, worry-filled face above her. Her eyes instantly filled with tears at the image, and she breathed out hopefully, "Wyatt? Is it really you?"

In answer, he drew her up into his arms, holding her so tightly she almost couldn't breathe. After consoling himself she was really okay, he pulled back slightly so he could put his hands on either side of her face. His sky blue eyes were dewy as he stared into her coffee pair. He told her solemnly, "Never scare me like that again."

Then Wyatt kissed her – passionately and lovingly.

Perry turned his eyes away, his jaw setting tightly. He felt like someone had just reached into his chest and grabbed his heart in a vice grip, digging long fingernails into the tender muscle. He felt like he couldn't breathe. So many emotions were whipping through him, he felt adrift in the moment. Shocked, betrayed, furious, jealous, ashamed and so incredibly, painfully heartbroken.

When the kiss ended, Wyatt pulled Casey back into a tight embrace, stroking her hair with his hand, whispering how much he loved her. How much he missed her. Her eyes sought out Perry, wincing at the pained expression on his face.

Molly noticed the look on Perry's face and the guilt radiating off Casey and a horrible feeling of dread filled her. She was going to turn a questioning gaze to Chris, but the moment she spun toward him, she was pulled into his arms, and the kiss he gave her made her momentarily forget her concerns. When they reluctantly parted, she smiled up at him, her heart filling with so much joy and relief she thought she'd burst. He remembered her. He still loved her.

Chris was smiling softly down at her. "I have a feeling I owe you a huge apology. Did I bail in the middle of my proposal?"

She blinked, dumbfounded. "You don't remember what happened?"

He shook his head. "Last thing I remember before all the crazy started was you foolishly agreeing to marry me." He pursed his lips, looking a bit nervous, "You didn't change your mind did you?"

In answer, Molly pulled him back down for another passionate kiss. When they parted, she was beaming up at him. "Not a chance."

Lucky orbed into the room, running into his mother's arms, who caught him and held him close, cherishing still having the ability to hold her son. The little boy's voice was muffled against her chest. "I was really scared. I couldn't feel you for a minute. I thought you were gone." He pulled back staring at her with tears in his eyes. "Promise you won't ever leave me, kay?"

Knowing her fate and refusing to lie to her son, Casey just pulled him into another hug. "Te amo, Lucerito. Always and forever."

"Uh, not to interrupt the love-fest," Paige cut-in, "but am I the only one seeing two of Chris?"

Phoebe who was wide-eyed and switching her attention from Chris to Perry and back again, smiled nervously. She spoke out of the side of her mouth as she confirmed, "No. No you are definitely not."

Piper moved to Perry, her eyes filling with tears. "It's you, isn't it? The one who came to save Wyatt?" When he only gave her a thin lipped smile, she pulled him into an embrace. Her voice was thick with emotion as she breathed, "We thought we lost you."

Leo came bolting into the room looking panicked until he saw Casey, looking alive and well, holding Lucky whose face was buried in her hair. He let out a relieved breath before his gaze turned to Perry. His eyes instantly began to mist, a strained smile forming as he laid eyes on the son he so vividly remembered dying in his arms. He said thickly, "I didn't give up."

Perry returned his smile with a small one of his own. "Me either."

Phoebe frowned suddenly realizing, "I remember Chris being the one to get stabbed. I don't remember Casey or Lucky being in the past at all. How is that possible?"

"I made you girls forget," Leo answered. Off their angry looks, "I had to make sure we didn't accidentally change the good future by knowing too much about it. I didn't want to risk erasing Lucky."

Piper shot him a lethal glare. "But you got to remember?"

He smiled sheepishly at his wife. "I was an elder at the time. I couldn't really forget."

"Not that I'm not glad to have our insanely neurotic nephew back," Paige commented, smiling as both versions shot her the same dirty look, "but what is going on? How are there two of them?"

A swirl of white light twisted into the attic forming the Angel of Destiny they had summoned at Magic School. The elderly man smiled softly. "I believe I can explain everything . . ."

TBC . . .


	16. Dirty Little Secret

Thank you so much to Anthony and sise87 for keeping my review addicted muse well fed. She is quite grateful.

Warning: F-bombs dropped below.

Chapter 16

The Angel of Destiny had known this moment was coming just as he knew all moments and all possible moments. He also knew the Halliwells tended to do everything together, so while part of him wanted to be irritated when they called in two more people to bear witness to his explanation, he wasn't surprised. Especially considering how very tenacious Prudence Halliwell and her boyfriend had been trying to figure out what had happened to their wayward nephew when he'd first disappeared.

Nearly the entire Halliwell clan, minus two husbands and the other Charmed offspring were seated or standing around the dining room table. He chose to stand. He tended to think better - remember more clearly - when he could move about. Considering how complicated this story would be even by his standards, he didn't want to miss anything.

"You said you could explain," Paige prompted, "so get to it already."

Always the impatient one the baby sister. He let out a weary breath. "Very well. It all started in the original timeline." He looked to Perry, "Your timeline. An Elder tampered with more than just Wyatt's destiny, and we were forced to take drastic actions to correct his blunder."

Prue, arms folded as she stood in the arch between the dining room and parlor, narrowed her eyes critically. "You were forced to take action? What sort of action?"

"By changing Wyatt to evil, Gideon had erased his destiny as King Arthur."

Perry shook his head. "No, he still wielded Excalibur. He was lethal with that thing. He even had a twisted form of round table too - demons and dark witches mostly." Catching the guilty look on Wyatt's face and the way the man started to shift uncomfortably, he felt a stab of regret at having been so blunt. Then he saw Casey put a hand on Wyatt's arm in comfort, and he didn't feel nearly as bad about it.

The Angel of Destiny wagged his finger. "Ah, but not the true round table - not Camelot. True Camelot comes from a place of goodness. It's why Galahad's reincarnation was not needed in your timeline. It's why we were forced to remove Lancelot's reincarnation from existence."

"Chris is Lancelot," Wyatt argued, confused. "He existed in both timelines."

"Chris Halliwell existed in both timelines," the Angel of Destiny conceded. Then he smirked, "But what's in a name?"

Piper leveled a lethal look at the man. She felt like he was toying with them, and no one messed with her family. Not unless they wanted to suffer her wrath. "Cut the cryptic crap. Tell me what the hell you did to my son."

"Sons," he corrected. Taking more glee in the story than probably wise, he explained, "While they both go by the name Chris Halliwell, and they both have the same parents and looks, they are no more the same person than you and I."

Molly, currently wrapped protectively in Chris' arms, remembered what he'd said the first time and supplied, "Different destinies for different people. Not just different versions of the same man, but actually different men?"

The Angel of Destiny tapped his nose with his finger. "Precisely, Lady Elaine."

"Who?" Molly asked.

Chris grinned. "Lancelot's wife after Guinevere spurned him and drove him mad."

"Wait, Elaine was Galahad's mother in the legends," Casey said, looking worried. "If Molly is Elaine, shouldn't . . . shouldn't Lucky be her son?"

The Angel looked annoyed with her insecurity. "Not all the stories were told accurately. In fact there are a great deal of stories that contradict one another. In any case, you'll find many inaccuracies, and this is one of them. Galahad belonged to Guinevere and Lancelot. The King was often questing - hiding a pregnancy from him was fairly easy. Elaine agreed to raise the boy as her own to protect Lancelot from losing his honor - a fate worse than death for him. She also wanted to keep the boy's mother from being executed for Lancelot and eventually Galahad's sakes."

"She raised him because Guinevere couldn't," Casey realized, the sorrow in her voice heartbreaking.

Molly moved from Chris' arms to put a hand on her friend's shoulder. She knew Casey's mind and heart quite well after all these years. She locked her hazel eyes on the younger woman's face, swearing, "Not this time."

Casey couldn't lift her gaze. She was thinking about her impending death again. About how she was going to have to leave Lucky. How when she'd met his sixteen year old version he'd been so hurt and angry about it. She squeezed her eyes shut as Wyatt pulled her against his side, laying a gentle kiss on the top of her head, trying to break her morbid thoughts. It didn't work, but she loved him for trying.

Leo, who'd been staring at his hands, which were clasped on the table, finally looked up, a frown on his face. "You said you erased Lancelot from the first timeline. What exactly did you mean?"

The Angel looked as though it should have been obvious. "In the original timeline, your wife was supposed to give birth to twins."

"Oh my god," Phoebe breathed as Paige exclaimed, "Come again?

Piper was shaking with rage. It looked like she might bring the whole house down soon as she sharply questioned, "Excuse me? You mean to tell me I was supposed to have twins, and you decided one of my children shouldn't exist? Who the hell do you think you are? How could you?"

"It's not as if we killed the child," the Angel defended. "We merely didn't let him exist. Lancelot was blindly loyal to Arthur. He'd likely have fallen to evil as well making it even more difficult, if not impossible, for Merlin to complete his destiny - which was only meant to be putting Arthur on the path to becoming the good king."

Perry pursed his lips, nodding slowly, the pain and sadness radiating off him was tangible. "I really was only meant to save Wyatt and that's it. It's why I wasn't born into this timeline, right? I wasn't needed anymore?" He shot a look to Phoebe, not able to stop himself from saying, "Guess you were right after all."

His aunt winced and dropped her brown eyes back to the table.

"What about the Spider Demon," Paige questioned. "If the baby wasn't you, how come when Piper drank the potion you were inoculated?"

"He was in the body of this timeline's Chris Halliwell," the Angel answered for him.

Andy, who'd been silently taking in the shocking revelation finally reasoned, "Something's not quite adding up here. Chris and Lucky couldn't exist in the first timeline because Wyatt was evil, but why not let Perry be born into this one? Wasn't Merlin also supposed to be some sort of teacher or mentor to Arthur?"

"Only in the fairytales," the Angel replied with an air of annoyance. "The other reincarnation of Merlin fell prey to the wiles of a woman shortly after Arthur became king and was locked away for centuries before finally perishing." He shot a meaningful look to Perry. "Merlin always had a weakness for pretty faces."

Perry set his jaw and shook his head while giving an angry roll of his eyes. He didn't fail to notice Casey blushing fiercely. He really hated it when the powers that be were right. Bianca had betrayed him, dragging him back to nearly die. Now, Casey . . . he couldn't even think about her right now. Damn it if he wasn't truly cursed in love.

Then Casey's voice, soft and a little shaky cut into his bitter thoughts. "I changed things. He didn't die. He's here now. Obviously his destiny has changed. Tell me you're not going to erase him. Please, you can't do that."

Perry looked up, saw her eyes shining. She was worried about him. Were her feelings for him real? Was what they had real? Their eyes met across the room for just a minute, and he saw the emotion in her coffee brown eyes. He swallowed thickly and looked away.

"No," the Angel answered. "Just as Gideon changed things we could not undo, so have you. Perhaps this time, Merlin will have the opportunity to share his knowledge with Arthur. Perhaps this time Camelot will be able to last with his wise council. Though it will depend on what the Elders decide to do with you considering . . ."

"Considering what?" Wyatt asked sharply, his tone several decibels lower than it had been in the attic. Perry nearly shuddered; it sounded so much more like _his_ Wyatt's voice. "He saved me. He saved the whole future. They can't punish him for that. I won't let them. If they think for one second they can take my brother from me, they'll have another thing coming."

Perry's head whipped up. He caught the Twice Blessed staring down the Angel of Destiny before the blond turned to shoot him a reassuring smile and nod. Perry could only blink dumbly for a moment. Wyatt had his real brother back. What did it matter what happened to him? Only . . . Wyatt really, genuinely seemed to care. Not in a psychotically possessive way, but as a good older brother. The kind he'd always wanted.

"You don't know, do you?" the Angel asked, shocked. "The Elders don't want to punish him. Quite the opposite. They've already rewarded him."

Only Leo seemed to understand. His blue-green eyes went wide, his mouth falling open. He couldn't seem to get the words out though. His tongue was thick and dry. He locked eyes with his son, the one he'd thought he'd lost forever, and in one look he was able to convey what he couldn't say.

Perry's green eyes widened, his face looking almost horrified. "Hell no. No freaking way. You have got to be _kidding_ me."

"Sweetie, what's wrong?" Piper asked, worry instantly flooding her. She moved to his side her hands going to his arms as her brown eyes probed his face looking for some sort of clue there.

Chris, who'd been quietly analyzing and trying to cope with everything he was hearing, finally realized something that had been bothering him since he'd woken up in the past. He frowned at Perry. "You were transparent, then you weren't, but your hair . . . and you said the power was new." His green eyes mirrored his counterpart's as the piece clicked in place. "They turned you into an Elder."

"Is that why I remember the past happening two different ways?" Perry asked the Angel. "I remember what just happened, but I also remember being the one stabbed and dying. I remember dying. Shit. That's it isn't it? This is the second time I've done all of this isn't it? I died the first time, so you put his," he pointed to Chris, "body back there with my essence or spirit or whatever you want to call it. I was supposed to die again, but since I didn't, my spirit didn't cease to exist like you were all hoping. Only I didn't have a body anymore."

"The Elders decided to save you," the Angel stated. "They felt you had earned a place amongst them for what you had done. Not to mention, you possess unique skills they could use."

"Skills?" Perry questioned.

"As Merlin's reincarnation, you see beyond what is to what could or should be," the Angel answered. "After all, how else do you think you successfully managed to change the timeline? The only beings who have ever manipulated time are Elders as your family has experienced."

Perry shook his head, beyond floored. Of all the fates he could have imagined for himself, stuck Up There for the rest of eternity cavorting with those arrogant, useless, sanctimonious idiots was not what he had in mind. Not even close. "They seriously expect me to play nice with them after one of them _murdered_ me? Are they insane?"

The Angel of Destiny shrugged indifferently. "An issue to take up with them. For now, I believe I've answered all your questions. The rest is up to you. I wish you good luck." He shot a look to Perry, "You'll need it."

Then he was gone.

Piper, who was still standing very close to Perry, was looking up at him with a motherly concern, and he almost cracked under it. He almost let her pull him into her arms where he'd surely confess to every bit of pain and fear he was feeling right now. Almost.

"Well," Paige broke the silence, "with Chris in their ranks, I guess this means we can't call the Elders ever useless anymore, huh?"

Phoebe and Prue both chuckled.

Leo looked a little hurt as he asked through a self-conscious smile, "You, uh, didn't say that when I was one . . . right?"

All three sisters shared looks before putting on wide smiles and reassuring faces while talking over one another incoherently.

"You? Gosh, Leo, no, never . . ."

"What? That's just ridiculous. You can be so silly sometimes."

"Best Elder ever."

Leo made a face nodding. "I see."

Andy put a hand on his friend's shoulder in sympathy. "Halliwell women, huh?"

The former elder chuckled. If anyone could understand it was certainly Andy. As difficult as Piper could be sometimes, Leo knew the inspector had it ten times worse with Prue. She used to actually scare him sometimes. Especially that one time she'd been turned into a dog. . .

Phoebe and Paige rose from their chairs, ignoring the men. They went over to Perry, smiling lovingly at him. Phoebe reached him first. Still carrying all the guilt she'd felt for how she'd treated him all those years ago, her brown eyes grew misty as she looked up at him. "For what it's worth, I am so sorry for how I acted toward you back then. I never should have said you weren't meant to be. I was wrong, and I have regretted those words so many times over the years. I hope you can forgive me because I am so glad you're here, and I love you so very much."

Perry gave a half smile, not quite able to meet her gaze. "It's okay. I understood. Really." His green eyes flicked up to her face. "I love you too Aunt Phoebe."

She gave him a tight hug, whispering in his ear. "I know this is a lot, so if you need to talk anytime about anything . . ."

"I know. Thanks."

Phoebe reluctantly moved away, allowing Paige access to their newly recovered nephew. Paige grinned, though her eyes were bright with moisture too. Sticking to her true form, she purposefully joked, "Aw, here comes huggin' part the sequel." She gave him an extra squeeze as he wrapped his arms around her with a genuine smile on his face. "I am so happy you're here, Kid."

"Me too."

Paige released him and wiped her eyes. "Oh boy, good thing I sprung for the extra waterproof mascara; otherwise, this might have been embarrassing." She laughed nervously. "Oh, and just so you know, your cousins are going to be super anxious to meet you. I'll try to hold them off, but being a Halliwell, you must realize the big family shindig is inevitable."

"Might not be so bad," Perry said with a small shrug.

Chris, who had been watching the exchange, scoffed. "Trust me. It's that bad. You'll want to brace yourself. Our cousins are relentless."

Paige opened her mouth to defend her children but shrugged and pulled a face instead. "Yeah. . ."

Phoebe nodded too. "Teenage girls. Pubescent boy. It's a lot."

"Speaking of which," Paige said, "We should get back to our husbands before they're totally eaten alive by the little monsters. Poor Henry. . .the girls are in sync if you get my drift."

Chris and Perry made identical disgusted faces. Chris was the one to voice the thought, "Didn't need to hear that about my baby cousins. Thanks."

Paige rolled her eyes before putting her hand on Phoebe's shoulder and orbing them away to their homes.

Prue and Andy walked over then. Prue was smiling at Perry, beaming with pride. "Hey. Do you know who I am?"

"Mom talked about you all the time. I've seen your picture," Perry answered, looking a little awe struck. He actually stuttered a bit as he held out his hand and said, "It's nice to meet you."

Prue gave him a look to say 'are you kidding me?' before moving past the extended hand and embracing him. When she pulled back her sharp grey eyes were shiny. "I always wanted the chance to tell you how incredibly brave I thought you were, and how proud I was of everything you did. According to Piper, you are a lot like me when it comes to protecting this family. Can't wait to get to know you, and I'm so glad you get to enjoy being part of this family again. You deserve it."

Perry actually reddened at the compliments. He couldn't meet her intense gaze. "Thanks, Aunt Prue."

Andy extended a hand. "Nice to meet you. Andy Trudeau."

"Hey," Perry returned, shaking the offered hand.

Prue let out a sigh. "As much as I would love to stay and chat, we actually have to get going too. I've got an early shoot to get to in the morning. We'll see each other soon though I'm sure."

As Prue and Andy went up in bright light, vanishing from the manor, Perry let out a breath, hoping the emotional moments were finally over. He was exhausted. Only just when he was about to ask where he could crash, he found Wyatt standing in front of him. The blond was staring at him with such an intense look, Perry felt himself instinctively tense.

The Twice Blessed said quite solemnly, "There's really only one thing I want to say to you."

The younger boy fought not to flinch, expecting the worst. Only instead of getting telekinetically strangled, hurled across the room or singed with an energy ball, he was completely thrown off guard as the large man pulled him in for a hug. Perry could only blink, mouth agape, not even returning the embrace as he was too shocked to get his arms to function.

"Thank you so much," Wyatt said, voice thick with emotion. When he released Perry, his face suddenly fell to reddened panic. "Oh my gosh. I didn't think. I should have asked if it was okay or something. You may not be a hugger. I'm a hugger. You're probably not, right? Then there's the whole me being evil in your world thing, so to you it was probably like getting hugged by the Source." He shook his head in irritation, muttering to himself, "Way to freak him out, Wyatt."

Perry, still a bit shocked, turned a confused but slightly amused look to his parents. "Is he always like this?"

Chris, arms folded, retorted with a teasing grin, "He babbles like Aunt Paige when he's nervous."

Wyatt shot him an annoyed look. "I do not."

Piper snorted while Leo chuckled. Their mother answered with a big smile, "Oh sweetie, you get inconvenient traits from all your aunts. You're even worse with secrets than Phoebe, you have Prue's stubbornness, and you definitely give Paige a run for her money in the babbling department."

"Remember," Leo said quietly to Perry, "clean slate."

Perry grinned at his father, giving him a subtle nod. He then addressed Wyatt, "Hugs are fine. FYI."

Wyatt seemed to relax substantially. Though his voice was still a bit timid as he explained, "I'm just really grateful for everything you did for me, and I'm really sorry about everything my other version put you through. I hope, eventually, you and I can get to know each other and be friends as well as brothers?"

"I'd like that too," Perry said, genuinely smiling.

The Twice Blessed suddenly grew a big goofy smile on his face as he realized, "Hey, I have two little brothers now. This is amazing."

"Sort of cosmic twins," Chris said, mulling it over. "I can live with that. Though, how are we going to explain my suddenly having a twin?"

"I have a feeling the elders have something in mind," Leo answered, a tiny grin forming. "After all, the Angel of Destiny said they wanted to reward him. I think they've thought this through."

Perry ran a hand through his hair, too tired to even worry about it. "I'll go up there in the morning to see what's going on. Right now, I just seriously want to crash." He looked to his mother, "Is the back room at P3 still free?"

"You are not sleeping on some lumpy cot at the club," Wyatt said, looking horrified. "I have a spare room at my apartment. You'll stay with me." Realizing it sounded a bit like an order, he amended sheepishly, "If you want. Up to you." He started to fidget, his blue eyes fascinated by the floor suddenly. "I understand if you're not, you know, comfortable being around me for awhile."

Perry rolled his eyes. "Stop it. We're cool." His eyes slid to Casey shooting her a pointed look before going back to Wyatt. "What happened in the past is a non-factor. A real bed sounds like a nice change."

"Then it's settled," Wyatt said, practically beaming.

Chris suddenly cleared his throat. "So, now that all the heavy stuff is out of the way, I actually sort of have an announcement." Once everyone had turned to look at him, he put his arm around his fiancee and smiled widely. "Molly and I are getting married." When everyone just grinned at him, instead of pouncing on them with excited congratulations and questions, he deflated. "Old news?"

"Dude, even I knew that, and I'm not from this timeline," Perry remarked, smirking.

Chris shot a look to his fiancee. "Couldn't wait for me to get back, huh?"

She smiled sweetly and held up her hand with the engagement ring on it, twisting it so the diamond would catch the light while she looked at it. "It's so shiny. Can't blame a girl for wanting to show it off . . ." She lightly poked him in the ribs with her other hand. "And you were gone for a long time."

"Sorry," Chris said softly, looking extremely guilty. He promised, "Never leaving you again, though."

Molly's face suddenly lit up then. "It's real now. You're home. We're actually engaged. I get to start planning our wedding." She was practically giddy as she repeated, "Our wedding. I can't believe it. Oh gosh, we need a date and flowers, and dresses and . . ." She shot an excited, hopeful look to Casey. "You'll help me, right?"

Casey, nodded, smiling brightly at her friend. " _Claro_. Whatever you need."

Piper moved to hug Molly then Chris. "I am very happy for you two, and I've put on my fair share of weddings in this house if you decide you want my help too."

"Absolutely," Molly said with a brilliant smile.

Leo hugged the happy couple next, offering a heartfelt congratulations. He then turned to his wife. "Well, it's been a long day, and I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be just as long. Should we call it a night, Piper?"

Piper looked between Chris and Perry, looking hesitant.

Perry, understanding, said softly, "I'm not going anywhere, Mom. Promise."

"Me either," Chris added. "Now you're stuck with double the trouble."

Piper put a hand on each of their faces, eyes shining softly. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

She hugged her boys one last time, said goodnight to the girls and then finally allowed herself to be lead up the stairs by her husband.

"We should celebrate," Wyatt announced. "One little brother is a hero and the other is getting married. My girlfriend and nephew are back safe and sound. Despite demonic efforts to the contrary, the future still got saved just like it did before. Everything is just as it should be."

Perry was going to ask what Wyatt meant by 'demonic efforts,' but he didn't get the chance as suddenly the Twice Blessed made a face and looked up to the ceiling. "Unfortunately, we'll have to do it another night. It's my charge in Ireland."

"Again?" Molly wondered. "I thought you helped her vanquish the Slaugh?"

"I did."

Casey folded her arms, her brow arched. "Gigi?"

Wyatt flushed. "I have to go. You know that."

"She didn't happen to find out I was gone, did she?" When he only looked more sheepish, Casey sighed. "I see. Well, you better go. You have a responsibility as her whitelighter."

"I'm sorry."

"I know," she replied quietly. Her eyes dropped to the floor, and she hugged herself, shifting nervously from one foot to the other. "No matter what time it is when you get back, promise you'll wake me up. I need to talk to you about something. It's important."

"Okay," he drew out, worried. With a creased brow he questioned, "Everything okay?"

Instead of answering, she kissed him, soft and slow and a bit sad. She couldn't meet his sweet blue gaze, so she stared into his chest as she struggled to tell him, "Go. I'll see you later." After he'd gone up in a swirl of light, a very concerned look on his face as he went, she muttered, " _Mierda_."

"What's wrong?" Molly asked.

Chris frowned, thinking a minute. Finally, it dawned on him. "Did you say Gigi?" Off Casey's nod, he pulled a face. "Oh, that sucks." He turned to Molly and Perry, who were both looking equally confused and explained, "Back in high school, Wyatt had just been assigned Gigi, and after a pretty close call, she wanted to thank him if you get my drift. Guess, she was thinking with Case out of the picture she might have a shot at rekindling things."

"She may want to," Molly argued, "but Wyatt would never even look at another woman. He's loved you for way too long to throw it away. You're it for him. You have to know that."

To Molly's utter dismay, the words seemed to make her friend even more distraught. She noticed as Casey swallowed thickly, fighting back some unknown emotions. Her friend said with a tiny tremor in her voice, "Yeah. I know. Anyway, I, uh, think I'm going to head to bed. Been a long day what with almost dying and all." She smiled, genuinely, as she looked at Chris and Molly, "I really am happy for you guys. You're perfect for one another, and you're going to have a great life together. You deserve to be happy."

For some reason, the last sentence nearly brought her to tears, and she hurried out of the room after giving them rushed hugs. Chris was about to follow her to find out why she was acting so strangely when Perry blocked his path. When Chris frowned at him, Perry gave a thin smile. "I've got this one. Go enjoy your first night as an engaged couple." His eyes grew dark and sad. "Believe me, you want to treasure it." Before Chris could question him on that, Perry shot over to the whitelighter, "Nice to meet you, Molly. Congrats."

As Perry ducked out of the room, Chris turned to Molly to find his fiancee frowning thoughtfully. He knew that look. It was not a good thing. He let out a breath. "I'm not going to like what comes out of your mouth next am I?"

"I think something's going on with Perry and Casey."

Chris let out a long, weary breath, running his hands through his hair. "Okay, see, that's exactly the kind of thing I didn't want to hear."

Molly bit her lip. "What do you think?"

"She's acting squirrely, and he looks pissed."

"What do you think happened?" Molly asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"I have no idea."

"So what do we do?"

Chris moved to stand so close in front of Molly their bodies were nearly touching. He put one hand to her waist and used the other to lovingly brush her raven hair behind her ear. "Nothing tonight." His eyes raked over her, dark with desire. "Tonight I make love to my fiancee. We can deal with it tomorrow."

"But, Chris. . ."

He silenced her by capturing her mouth with his. The kiss was deep and passionate. It was the kind of kiss to leave her heart racing, her body filled with spreading heat as her mind became increasingly fuzzy. She had missed him so much - his voice, his stunning green eyes, his touch. Everything about Chris being back with her made her tingle and glow. He brought her to life.

Feeling herself pressed up against his strong chest, his warm, soft lips teasing her own, Molly realized how badly she wanted him. It was a need at this point. So, when Chris orbed them to his bedroom, and they tumbled onto his mattress, Molly decided he was right. They'd deal with Casey and Perry tomorrow. . .

Meanwhile Casey was making her way to her room in the basement when she suddenly felt her arm grabbed from behind, and it was twisted painfully as she was forcibly jerked forward into the basement a bit faster. Half shoved through the door, she nearly tumbled down the stairs. As she regained her footing toward the bottom, she looked up to the landing to find Perry glaring down at her. He telekinetically slammed the door behind him as he stalked down the stairs toward her.

He stopped just in front of her, his green eyes seemingly glowing in the dim lighting. It made the rage easier to see. He was standing intimidatingly close and towering over her. His face was so harsh, she felt herself shiver. It was like she was back on the bridge all over again.

"Chris . . ."

"-Don't," he cut her off. His voice was so much lower than she was used to hearing. So cold. "Why the _fuck_ didn't you tell me?"

Casey winced, tears already stinging the back of her eyes. "I tried-"

His green eyes flashed dangerously. "Not very damn hard."

"What was I supposed to do?" she shot back. "When I first got there you were so freaked out about the idea of my being in cahoots with Wyatt, you almost threw me off the freaking bridge and then-"

"-I did not almost throw you off the bridge," Perry argued. "Besides, there was-"

"-And _then_ ," Casey tried again, interrupting him this time, "you called him a labrador. I had every intention of telling you about Wyatt in P3 that night, but you wouldn't stop. You didn't care when I told you I was in love with someone else."

Perry flinched, almost imperceptibly. His tone was biting as he tossed back, "Might have made a difference if I would have known it was my own brother." He shook his head, closing his eyes in frustration. "Damn it, Casey. _Wyatt_? Really? Out of all the people you had to pick him? You . . ." He struggled for a minute, a pained expression coming through, "you were the one person who ever picked me over him. Now, you're the president of his fan club."

"Chris," she breathed sadly. She remembered him talking about his inferiority complex with his brother in the past. Apparently, it was about more than just magical powers.

He shook his head, his jaw tight. "Do you have any idea what this is like for me? Watching you with him? Seeing how he looks at you and touches you . . . and that _fucking_ kiss?" His green eyes, full of raw pain locked on her shining brown pair. "I wish Gideon would have stabbed me again. It hurt less."

Tears slipped off her lashes now. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want you to find out that way. I wanted to tell you. I swear I tried so many times. I don't know-"

"-And he's so . . . _nice_." Perry cut-in, letting loose now. He was pacing, running a hand through his hair, talking more to himself than her. "He hugged me. He wants me to crash at his place - a perfect stranger, and he's going to let me stay in his home. Though, he doesn't think of me as a stranger - oh no - I'm his brother already, and he's just so excited about it." He finally looked back over at her. "He's Mr. Perfect in this world isn't he? All the powers imaginable, and the whole blond, muscular thing, and now, he's really just so damn kind and thoughtful and _shit_ this is so messed up, Casey."

"I know."

Perry paused in his pacing. He swallowed thickly, his eyes turbulent with emotion as he asked, "What was I to you? If you're so in love with my brother, how did you wind up in my bed? Explain to me how you can say you love me and then look at _him_ and touch _him_ the way you do. Was I just some sort of sick revenge for what Chris did to you?"

She looked horrified. "God no."

"Then what the hell am I to you?"

Her voice was so soft he barely her heard her as she half-sobbed, "I don't know."

"I'm going to make this really easy for you," he said, the coldness back in his voice and face. "I'm out. I spent one life battling Wyatt. I don't need another reason to fight with him." He moved close to her again, crowding her back against the wall. His face was inches from hers as he told her darkly, a hint of a threat in his tone, "Which means you say _nothing_. Not. One. Damn. Word. He never finds out about us. We clear?"

Casey shook her head. "I can't lie to him. He deserves to know. Besides, Barbas-"

"-You think it'll matter?" he angrily scoffed. "For the rest of our lives, you'd be putting an image of us in bed together in his head. You already have a child with Chris. What do you think this would do to him, huh? You'd ease your mind and destroy his."

She closed her eyes, tears trailing down her cheeks. After fighting to regain some semblance of control over her emotions, she opened her eyes and saw he was still staring emotionlessly down at her. "So, I'm just supposed to lie to him forever?"

Perry spoke slowly, levelly as he replied, "If you don't want to lose everything - yes."

Then, despite the fact his heart was breaking to pieces at the sight of her tearful, pained face; despite still wanting nothing more than to take Casey into his arms and make her believe everything would be okay; despite still loving her deeply even knowing she was Wyatt's; he turned and walked away from her. Literally and figuratively. It was one of the hardest things he'd ever done in his life, and he had no idea two demons were planning on using this struggle against him very soon.

TBC . . .


	17. Broken Strings

Thank you sooo much to sise87 and Callisto Nicol for your inspiring reviews. They really do make all the difference in keeping this story flowing. Also, the author can be bribed to include things if it doesn't interfere with the major plot points :)

Chapter 17

Bianca was fairly certain if she ever actually met an elder she would shoot them with an energy ball. It wouldn't kill them by any means, but she hoped it would at least hurt a lot. They deserved it. The Elders were playing a dangerous game and had put her square in the middle of it. Love was, after all, the most treacherous game in existence.

George, her former whitelighter, had been given such limited details when this whole thing first started. He'd told her the elders had caught wind her demon ex-boyfriend, Nomed, had discovered a dangerous piece of information regarding the past. How someone had gone back in time to save the future and succeeded, but Nomed wanted to undo it. They wanted her to keep an eye on him, make sure he didn't interfere.

They'd left out the part about how the person who'd gone to the past was Chris Halliwell, or how he'd saved the future from his own brother, who'd become an all-powerful, evil overlord. Small details in their world, she supposed bitterly. She'd only discovered the truth when she'd regained Nomed's trust, and he'd started detailing his plan to her. How the Halliwell brothers were the reincarnation of Arthurian legends, and how she was Morgan Le Fay and destined to help destroy them.

The Elders hadn't even known his whole plan until she'd told them. Yes, Nomed hoped to return the Twice Blessed to evil, but he wasn't putting all his hopes on reverting the timeline. Nomed wanted to break the Twice Blessed's spirit, show him there was no point in being good when the people you love most, who are closest to you, betray you. If he didn't turn evil, Wyatt Halliwell would at least be an easy target once he was shattered. Much like the original Arthur had fallen once he'd learned of Guinevere and Lancelot's betrayals, so too would Wyatt Halliwell be destroyed one way or the other when he lost his brother and lover in one fell swoop.

Bianca had been keeping tabs on Nomed and reporting her findings to her whitelighter just as ordered, but then, something horrible happened. George had orbed into her apartment with more information from the Elders. He'd just started explaining how she and Chris Halliwell had apparently worked together in the evil timeline and were destined to work together again to save Wyatt Halliwell in this life when Nomed shimmered in. She'd been forced to say terrible things to George, pretending he was there uninvited trying to turn her back to being a good witch. Nomed had killed him right in front of her, and she'd been helpless to save him.

She'd been so distraught by George's death, she'd shirked her mission, blaming the Elders for his death. Nomed had gotten to Lucky Halliwell the next day. Bianca hadn't understood why he'd sent the child and his mother back through time until Nomed had gleefully explained the version of Chris Halliwell in the past had no memory of the present. He had no idea the mother of his child was with his brother. She'd also learned the Seer had contacted Barbas to pull the strings in the past. Everything was quickly spiraling out of her control.

Then, something strange had happened. A new whitelighter, some frail looking older man with dark skin had shown up at her dojo. She'd tried to get rid of him at first, not wanting anything to do with a new whitelighter, but he'd been persistent. He said he had a new way for her to complete her mission. It involved a very powerful, very rare potion, and it had to be blessed by Wyatt Halliwell. While he didn't know it yet, the potion would save him from destruction, but he would be unwilling to take such a path until he'd been pushed to the brink, so it was vital he not know who it was for or why.

Wyatt Halliwell was a good looking man if she was being honest. She couldn't imagine what woman in her right mind would cheat on someone who looked like he was a descendent of the Greek Gods. Flirting with him at P3 had been the highlight of this whole mess. Except, he still hadn't made the damn potion making her feel like a failure yet again.

When she'd informed her random whitelighter of this fact, the old man, whose name she didn't bother learning, had told her to keep a watchful eye on Nomed. The demon was devious, patient and cunning, and they needed her to continue as their spy to know what his next move may be. He'd emphasized, yet again, how important it was she protect Chris Halliwell from being manipulated. She needed to stay in Nomed's good graces no matter what. It was like she was some magical prostitute to the Elders, and she hated them for it.

Then, the Elders had assigned her Molly, Chris Halliwell's fiancée. Apparently, the whitelighter was supposed to be her way of getting into the Halliwell's good graces. Bianca found her to be cloyingly sweet and so very much a whitelighter to the core. Based on her research of Merlin, he seemed to go for the bad girls, so she had no idea how his reincarnation had wound up with Molly. Perhaps that was why he'd stray, damning everyone to a dark future once more. He was going to get bored. Poor Molly. She really seemed like a sweet kid.

So, now, after everything her mother had sacrificed to make sure Bianca would never have to work with demons or kill an innocent, Bianca was currently sitting in an upscale apartment in San Francisco with two of the most powerful demons around, plotting how to bring about the deaths of countless innocents by turning a paragon of good evil. Again.

"I did my part," Barbas was drawling. "You were the one supposed to get the Twice Blessed to catch baby brother up close and personal with Guinevere."

Nomed was glaring back the Demon of Fear from his place at the table. "I would have if you hadn't gone and vanquished the Seer. She held the looking glass we needed to show him what was happening in the past."

Bianca sat up a bit straighter in her chair. Apparently, Barbas had been successful in the past, but no one knew about the affair yet. She had to make sure it stayed that way, but how?

The silver haired demon shrugged, looking completely unapologetic. "What can I say? I was having a very baaad day."

"That's the problem with you old timers," Nomed snapped, "you're always so focused on your own desires and short term satisfaction. No wonder you were never able to defeat the Charmed Ones. Now, because of your blunder, we need to find a new way to make sure Wyatt Halliwell knows the people he cares about most have betrayed him."

"Don'tcha think with all the psychics in that family _some_ one oughta have picked up a teensy little vision about it?" Barbas whined.

Bianca, trying to seem helpful, commented dryly, "Not if the Elders don't want them to."

Nomed began pacing the area, trying to think. After a moment, a devious grin spread across his face. He turned to Barbas. "What if we don't need him to see what already happened? What if we just make certain it continues? After all, you were able to manipulate them once what's to say those emotions aren't still bubbling just below the surface?"

"I may be able to arrange that," Barbas conceded. "Though, it will be so much harder now that she's been reunited with the Twice Blessed. The woman's feelings for him are quite strong. His presence may give her enough strength to counteract my suggestions."

"Then I think we need to find a way to weaken her affection for him," Nomed reasoned. "Make her question _him_. Make her doubt _him_. After all, my research of the Halliwells indicated it wouldn't be the first time she's doubted his loyalty. The demon, Zayel, used a potion to make him unfaithful once before. If we can find that potion, we can use it again."

"It covers the girl, but," Barbas held up a finger, "baby brother knows the truth now. He won't willingly betray Wyatt now. His greatest fear is losing his family. He'll sacrifice anything to make sure that doesn't happen. Even deny his own feelings."

The corner of Nomed's mouth quirked up, his eyes growing a devious glint. "Then it's a good thing I have the one person who can manipulate him. The one person who has ever succeeded in breaking him." He turned to give Bianca a strange look, and she instantly felt a cold knot of dread forming in her stomach. It was only confirmed as he told her, "Time for you to meet your true purpose, Sweet Bianca."

She bristled, the anxiety building. Something in the way he was looking at her told her all was not as it seemed. It was only her years of training as a Phoenix that kept her voice level as she questioned, "Oh? How so?"

Barbas had snaked his way behind her his yellowed teeth showing as he gave a large, twisted smile. She didn't fail to notice his hand up by her face. His voice crooned, "Did you really think I wouldn't tell him the truth? That your greatest fear is losing yourself to your dark heritage? Succumbing to eeevil?"

"Meaning you never truly returned to me." Nomed was giving her a heated glare as he moved steadily toward her. "Did you really think me such a fool? I researched the Halliwells. I know everything there is to know about them. Did you honestly think I wouldn't have found out about your connection to Chris Halliwell?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she defended, hoping she could somehow still convince him of her allegiance. "You're the one who told me I was Morgan Le Fay to his Merlin. We're destined to be enemies."

His hand was on her face then, stroking the side of it gently despite the coldness in his brown eyes. "Your destiny is tightly entwined with his. Both enemies and lovers in all lives. Merlin taught Morgana everything he knew because he loved her, but she betrayed him. In fact, you were the love of his life in the other timeline too except that time you died to save him."

Bianca started, completely thrown. She had no idea she and Chris Halliwell had been intimate. She swallowed thickly. "I've never even met him. The timeline is changed. He's engaged to some whitelighter now from what I hear."

"There are two Chris Halliwells now," Nomed replied, pulling back his hand. "The one from the other timeline lives, and he will want you back. I can't have you two reuniting. It'd ruin our plans."

Bianca blinked, trying to understand. Two of them? Chris wants _her?_ Destined to be together? What had the Elders gotten her into? She tried to shimmer away, but Nomed was faster, grabbing her hair to keep her in place. She moved to strike him, but he hit her with a potion, and she flashed black before passing out into his arms.

"She won't be able to resist the pull of darkness now," Barbas purred, pleased.

Nomed lightly kissed the unconscious woman, smiling almost sadly. "Chris Halliwell will never touch you again, My Love. You'll help me destroy the Halliwells, and then, then, we can be together as we were always meant to be."

000

Perry had crashed at his older brother's apartment last night after Wyatt returned from helping his charge in Ireland. The Twice Blessed had wanted to stop by Casey's room just as he'd promised, but Perry had been waiting for him in the kitchen and intercepted him. He'd told his brother the young woman had nearly passed out from exhaustion, and he really felt it was for the best if he let her sleep. Whatever she wanted to talk to him about could wait until the morning. Wyatt had gone along with it easily. This version of his sibling was so trusting it made the guilt eating at Perry that much sharper. He consoled himself the truth would only hurt Wyatt.

While the Twice Blessed had wanted to stay up talking, getting to know his new brother, Perry wasn't quite ready for that yet. He wanted to have a new relationship with his brother - he really did - but so much had happened today, and he wasn't in the frame of mind for brotherly bonding. He'd apologized and said he really needed some sleep. Wyatt had been nothing but understanding, which shocked him. Perry had expected at least a little argument. New Wyatt was definitely going to take some getting used to.

When Perry woke up after a fitful night of sleeping, it was to what he assumed was a giant bear growling in the next room. Apparently, his brother snored. Loudly. At least this version finally had a flaw. He smiled about that. Golden boy wasn't perfect after all.

Not up for facing Wyatt just yet, Perry had showered, dressed and orbed straight Up There to face his fate. What he'd discovered had shocked him. It wasn't at all what he'd expected the Elders to tell him. He needed to let Chris and the rest of the family know.

Which is why he was currently sitting at the kitchen table in the manor waiting for everyone else to wake up. He'd made a pot of coffee and was reading the news off someone's tablet that had been left sitting there. He was engrossed in the latest political report when he suddenly heard Molly tell him good morning. He was about to respond back when he suddenly felt a warm, soft kiss at the base of his neck. He quickly jumped out of his chair, dropping the tablet onto the table with a bang.

Instantly recognizing her mistake, Molly's hazel eyes went wide, her hands flying to her mouth in embarrassed horror. She asked, already knowing the answer, "You're not Chris?"

"No. Not Chris," Perry responded a bit harshly, holding his hands up. "Definitely not Chris. Can't you sense the difference? You're a whitelighter for crying out loud."

Molly blushed fiercely. "I didn't think to. I mean, you were sitting in his chair, drinking coffee and reading off his tablet just like he does every morning. He wasn't in bed, so I thought. . . I mean you look _exactly_ the same." She frowned, suddenly noticing a change. "Your hair isn't streaked white anymore."

Green eyes rolled as the young man folded his arms over his chest. "I may be an Elder, but I'm also only twenty-three. No way was I leaving it like that. Figured if Leo could change his back I could."

"Leo?" Molly questioned. Suddenly something Chris had said before he left for the past made sense to her. "The abandonment issues were coming from you, huh?"

"I do not have abandonment issues," he replied, hotly. "Thanks."

Molly had the decency to look a bit sheepish. After all, she really didn't know Perry. It wasn't her place to be so overly familiar with him. "Sorry. I didn't mean offense. It's not my business. I'm sorry for the kiss too."

"Kiss?" Chris' voice came from the doorway. His eyebrows were up as he looked between Molly and Perry. Noticing the irritated look on his twin's face and the mortified one on Molly's he couldn't help but grin. "Couldn't tell us apart I take it?" When she only colored more deeply he shot a look to Perry, noticing they did look completely identical. "We really should do something so this sort of thing doesn't happen again."

"Couldn't agree more," Perry said, a bit too emphatically. He didn't notice Molly wince. He was too busy thinking how the last thing he needed was to have both his brothers' girlfriends kissing him. Shaking away that thought, he studied his counterpart a moment. "You always wear your hair a bit longer? Clean shaven too?"

"Yeah, why?"

Perry snapped his fingers, his hair instantly changing from the shagginess they'd both been wearing to a shorter cut. It was styled up toward the front and clean cut on the sides and back. He also had a hint of a five o'clock shadow, giving him a bit of a more rugged appearance than his counterpart. "Better?"

Molly's eyebrows went up as she took in the sight of him. Chris, noticing, gave her a playful head shake warning, "Hey now. I saw that."

The whitelighter blushed again. "Sorry, just I've never seen you look like that. It's sort of . . . edgy?"

"Edgy?" Chris scoffed. "With those clothes? He looks like he walked out of an ad for Ralph Lauren."

Perry smirked, tossing back, "Why? Because I don't dress like I'm still in high school?"

Molly giggled at the slightly insulted look on her fiancée's face at the barb. When he shot her a betrayed glance, she shrugged. "You do tend to wear mostly jeans and t-shirts. I don't think I've ever seen you in a sweater." She pulled a face as she took in Perry's dark green pullover. "I guess that should have been my first clue, huh?"

"It didn't pay to buy nice clothes when Lucky was always spitting up on them, getting his little hands dirty and then grabbing me," Chris defended himself. "Casey gets it. Right?"

No one else had noticed the latina come into the room. When all eyes suddenly turned to her, Casey looked around nervously. She hadn't really been paying attention to the conversation. She smiled unsurely at Molly asking, "What am I getting pulled into?"

"Chris' lack of fashion is being blamed on parenthood," she explained, lightly, sipping from the mug of coffee Chris had just given her.

Casey nodded before agreeing, "Hard to own nice things when they always get ruined."

"Ha!" Chris shot at his counterpart, who rolled his eyes through a smile.

Casey added, smirking, "Though, after the toddler phase, it really doesn't happen that much anymore. You're just too lazy to make an effort most of the time."

"You're one to talk," Chris retorted gesturing at her current ensemble.

Perry couldn't help but notice what she was wearing then. A flirty jean skirt with a butterfly patch in glittery silver, blue and gold threads, but it was paired with a loose fitting navy blue hooded sweatshirt. The sweatshirt looked a bit odd with it. Firstly, it appeared to have white windows on it and the words, 'Police Box' across the top. He didn't mean to say it aloud as he wondered, "Police Box?"

"I beg of you - do not get her started," Chris said. "She'll talk about that show for hours."

Perry frowned shooting a look to Molly, who seemed far too amused. He then realized for the first time how put together the whitelighter was dressed. Dark purple blouse, dark wash jeans and black boots. She was not his type in the slightest, but he could admit she looked beautiful - very classy.

"It's a British television show," Molly explained. "Dr. Who. She got hooked when they played reruns at night when she was up feeding Lucky. I'm with Chris - don't get her started."

"Geeze," Casey griped, moving to stand next to Chris at the stove. "I'll never mention it again. I didn't even mention it now. It's just my favorite sweatshirt."

If he was being honest, Perry wasn't really paying much attention to her sweatshirt anymore. As she moved to stand next to Chris at the stove, her skirt swished, and Perry found himself staring. He'd always found skirts to be a huge turn on. Such easy access for hands and . . . He squeezed his eyes shut, swallowing thickly to force his mind to stop picturing doing things to Casey in that skirt. On the island. Or against the wall. Damn it.

"Pancakes good with everyone?" Chris questioned.

Molly wrapped her arms around him, giving him the same kiss she'd landed on Perry earlier. "Sounds wonderful."

As Molly stepped away to join Perry at the table, Perry watched the other two start working in tandem, pulling out pots and pans and various ingredients. Obviously, they planned on making a small feast. They moved in perfect sync. Neither needed to say a word to the other but would simply hand each other whatever tool or ingredient the other needed. Though he wouldn't admit it, Perry found he was a bit jealous of the ease they shared. She wasn't his best friend anymore. She was Chris'.

"So, have you seen the Elders yet?" Molly asked, handing Perry the mug of coffee he'd abandoned when she'd startled him.

He took it, holding it between his hands. God he loved coffee. Everything about it. Right now, he found comfort from the warmth of it in his hands. "Uh, yeah, actually. Turns out, I can stay. They never had any intention of me making me live Up There. They want me to stay on earth and help Wyatt."

"That's awesome," Chris threw over his shoulder as he flipped something in a pan.

"Hope you still think so when I tell you how they pulled it off," Perry replied, taking a sip of coffee to steal his sudden nerves. After he'd swallowed, he continued, "They've officially made us twins. Changed birth records, altered memories where needed. Changed your name. . ."

Chris dropped his pan and turned around. "Come again?"

"Just your middle name," he explained. "Elders thought it would be strange for you to have your twin's first name as your middle."

Molly asked, "So what is it now?"

"Christopher Leonard Halliwell," Perry informed them. "I'm Perry Victor Halliwell, apparently."

"I'm named for Dad and you for Grandpa?" Chris nodded approvingly. "Works for me."

Perry pursed his lips, staring into his black coffee for a moment before venturing, "So . . . how is Grandpa?"

Everyone was surprised when Wyatt's voice was the one to answer. "Grandpa's great. He was a bit of a wreck when Chris went missing, but he was really hoping to see you again." Wyatt smiled warmly at Perry. "You made quite the impression on him in the past from what he told me last time we spoke."

Perry let a relieved smile form. He'd saved Grandpa. He'd get to see him again after all.

Lucky came bounding into the kitchen just then, nearly knocking his uncle off his feet trying to get past him. He bypassed everyone, heading straight for Molly, throwing his arms around her. "Molly! I missed you so much." He pulled back and started rambling excitedly, "Guess what I did? I cast a spell all by myself, and it worked, and I went to the past, and I helped Perry - even vanquished my very first demon all by myself!"

"Wow," Molly exclaimed. "That all sounds very exciting, Lucky."

Chris turned from the stove to look in disbelief at his son. "You vanquished a demon?" He turned to Casey. "I missed his first vanquish?"

"Sorry," she said, looking guilty. "He did great though. It was a Spider Demon."

Chris' brows lifted toward his hairline. "You vanquished a Spider Demon? That's incredible, Lucky." He moved to give his son a large hug. He pulled away brushing the little boy's bangs from his face to better look in his eyes as he told him, "I am so proud of you."

Perry watched the scene and remembered with a stab of guilt how he'd been the one present when Lucky had vanquished the demon. He'd blown the kid off - too caught up in his own emotional drama. Watching Chris interact with Lucky, Perry wished the kid's real dad had been there. Chris was really good with him, and it was easy to see Lucky adored him. Perry took another drink of his coffee as he realized painfully how much he actually missed Lucky looking at _him_ that way. He hadn't ever thought about having kids, but he was going to miss being a dad now that he'd had a taste of it.

As if sensing Perry's thoughts, Lucky moved from Chris toward Perry. Without a word, he gave Perry a big hug, smiling brightly up at him. Perry felt so incredibly touched by the gesture, and he smiled warmly down at the boy. "Hey, Kiddo. What's up?"

"Dad said you're his twin. Do you get to stay?"

"Yeah, I'm not going anywhere."

Lucky hugged him again, his voice pure joy as he said, "Good. I'd really miss you, Uncle Perry."

To his utter shock, Perry felt the back of his eyes sting, a lump in his throat. This kid had his heart. No doubt about it. "I'd miss you too, Lucky."

"What am I? Chop liver?" Wyatt asked his nephew. "I missed you too you know."

The little boy rolled his eyes with a smile on his face and moved to go give Wyatt a very quick hug before immediately returning to his place at the table next to Perry.

The Twice Blessed laughed good naturedly. "Well, I guess we know who his favorite uncle is, huh?"

To his parents' mortification, Lucky enthusiastically nodded, and Perry couldn't quite hide the grin that spread across his face at the confirmation. Though, when he saw his older brother looking his way, he was grateful for the plate of food Chris set down in front of him just then, so he could shove a large bite of pancake in his mouth.

"It's okay, Perry," Wyatt reassured him laughing lightly at the other man's reaction. "If you ever start teaching his magic classes, I'm sure you'll become just as uncool as I am."

Lucky leaned over to whisper to Perry, "He's sooooo boring. He talks _a lot_. I bet you'd be so much fun. Teach us the good stuff." He then took a big bite from one of the pancakes his father had set in front of him next.

"Maybe," Perry smiled, chuckling slightly. God, he really loved this kid.

Meanwhile, Wyatt had moved further into the kitchen to wrap his arms around Casey. When she turned to look at him, he moved his hands to her waist, smiling lovingly down at her. "Good morning," he greeted before giving her a kiss.

Perry dropped his eyes to the table taking another long swig of his coffee. He didn't fail to notice Lucky frown at the sight of his mother and Wyatt before he turned a questioning look back at him. The Elder gave the confused youth a tight smile and a small shrug, hoping it would be enough to make Lucky drop it.

"What are you doing here?" Casey asked Wyatt. "Don't you have a class at Magic School this morning?"

"Not for a little bit," Wyatt answered. He brushed her hair back behind her ear. "I wanted to make sure you were okay. You really scared me last night."

Casey touched his face gently, smiling softly as he leaned into her touch. "I'm here. I'm alive. Everything is fine."

"And I'm just here to verify all of that," Wyatt replied with a teasing smile.

The tiny woman pulled her hand back to fold her arms over her chest, a look of fond frustration forming on her face as she stared up at him. "So how long can I expect the hovering to last?"

"The rest of your life okay with you?"

Perry choked on his coffee, earning a concerned look from Molly and a frown from Chris. He didn't bother trying to explain. He was too transfixed on Wyatt and Casey. He didn't even realize he was holding his breath waiting for her response. He just felt his chest tighten painfully.

All the color had drained from Casey's face, her mouth opening but no words coming. Her big brown eyes were wide with shock, and she could only blink while trying very hard not to hyperventilate.

Seeing her reaction, Wyatt realized what she'd thought he'd just asked and quickly assured her, "Case, I'm not proposing. I am intimately aware of your marriage phobia. I just meant I'm always going to worry about you. I love you too much not to."

Perry closed his eyes letting out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He noticed Molly and Chris still staring at him and forced a small smile. Molly smiled back, turning her attention back to the other couple. Chris frowned at him and identical green eyes locked. Perry swallowed as he realized Chris was on to him.

Casey bit her lip, fidgeting uncomfortably. "Thank you for understanding. I love you too. Very much."

"I know that." Wyatt smiled, his blue eyes lighting up at her declaration. Then, he shrugged lightly shoving his hands in his pockets. "Besides, I don't need a piece of paper to prove anything. As long as I always have you, I've got all I need."

"Aw," Molly said, her hand going to her heart. Chris smiled, shaking his head as he handed her a plate of food. Both Perry and Lucky rolled their eyes.

"Besides, I wouldn't want to steal Chris' thunder," Wyatt said, ruffling his little brother's hair affectionately as the man came to plate more food for the group. The gesture earned him a slapped hand with a half-hearted glare and a, "Don't touch me."

Perry watched the interaction between his counterpart and Wyatt and let out an amused breath. So that was how brothers were supposed to act, huh? He wondered if he'd ever get the chance to be that way with either of them.

"Oh," Wyatt suddenly said, remembering something. He was clearly excited, nearly bouncing much like the labrador Perry had unwittingly compared him to. "Before I forget, we still need to celebrate the engagement and Perry's arrival. Is everyone free tonight? I figured we could hang out at P3? Drinks on me?"

Chris shot his older brother a grin. "Well, if you're buying . . ."

Wyatt glanced at the women who both nodded agreement. He then shot a look to Perry, waiting for the final confirmation.

P3 had alcohol. That had to make this whole thing easier, right? "Sure. Sounds, uh . . . fun."

"Great. Everyone is in. It's going to be so much fun. I promise," Wyatt said, looking nearly giddy. He suddenly sucked in his lips looking quite nervous. His eyes were focused on Perry again. Taking a breath, clearly trying to gain courage, he started, "Also, Perry, I was going to ask you this morning, but you were already gone, so . . ."

Perry tried to give him an encouraging smile, but he wasn't sure if came out right. Seeing his formally evil, all powerful sibling acting unsure and almost awkward was surreal. After all, his Wyatt had thrived on being poised and intimidating. Weakness wasn't allowed. "What's up, Wyatt?"

"I get done teaching my class at noon. Would you maybe . . ." He shrugged again, ". . . you know, want to have lunch? With me. It'd be on me. I'd pay. Completely my treat. Least I can do considering everything you've done for me. You can pick the spot too. Or if you want me to, I can choose since I guess you might not know what's around given as I apparently blew up the city or something in the other timeline. Or you can pick. Either way. I don't want to make you do anything you don't want to do. You don't have to come even. I'd understand."

Perry's eyebrows kept climbing as the other man continued to ramble. He wondered when he was going to wake up because this had to be some kind of really strange dream.

Chris laughed, slapping his brother on the arm. "Wyatt, breathe. You're scaring Perry."

Wyatt looked horrified. "I am?"

"Just in a trying-way-too-hard kind of way," Perry assured him with a small smile. "I know you're nothing like the Wyatt I grew up with. Least, not in any of the bad ways. Stop trying to make up for things he did. Just be yourself. I told you – we're cool."

"So lunch?" Wyatt asked with hopeful puppy-dog looking eyes.

Just the two of them. Alone. Was he ready for that? Perry pushed his breakfast plate away, the food only half eaten. "I'm not used to eating this much. I'm not sure I'll be hungry by then." He saw Wyatt's face start to fall and was reminded of a dog who had stopped wagging his tail. Guilt flooded him again. This wasn't his Wyatt. He needed to give him a chance. He slowly added, "If nothing else I can get something to drink, though. So . . . yeah. Okay. I'll meet up with you at magic school, and you can take me to wherever you like to go. Sound good?"

The Twice Blessed's whole face lit up in a brilliant smile. "Absolutely." Plans settled, he turned to look to Lucky. "Since your classes start soon too, how about we go together? Give me a chance to hang out with my favorite nephew for a bit?"

Lucky rolled his eyes. "I'm your _only_ nephew."

"So you win by default," Wyatt replied, finally earning a smile from Lucky.

Perry rose from his chair, grabbing his dishes and heading toward the sink while Chris started giving Lucky instructions on where to meet him after his classes were out as he'd be picking him up after school today. Molly was finishing her breakfast and listening to Chris and Lucky.

Wyatt moved back to Casey, slipping his arms around her and pulling her close, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "Don't suppose you could wear that green dress tonight at the club?" He playfully wiggled his eyebrows at her. His voice dipped as he whispered in her ear, "Then again, maybe not. I'd probably have to take you home right away."

While no one else had heard the innuendo, Perry had the unfortunate luck of catching every word. He found himself throwing the coffee mug in the sink with a loud clang. When he noticed everyone jump, he replied numbly, "Sorry. Slipped right out of my hand."

Casey's brown eyes tried to catch his green, and for a second, Perry looked at her. The guilt was all over her face like a painful shadow. Keeping their affair from Wyatt was killing her. Lying to the man she loved was eating her alive - he could tell by the bags under her eyes she hadn't slept last night. Then there was the fact Perry knew she loved him too - whatever it meant. Based on the look she was giving him right now, watching him suffer in silence was breaking her heart too. Seeing her suffering, Perry wondered if he was wrong. Maybe they should come clean. Maybe this Wyatt would understand . . .

Then, like it was something he'd done a million times before, Wyatt pulled Casey into a quick kiss of goodbye, and it was so obvious while marriage may not be on the table, forever was definitely Wyatt's goal. Perry couldn't ruin that for him. Casey was Wyatt's. Period. The past should stay buried.

Perry felt a strong urge to vanquish demons. Lots and lots of demons.

Wyatt extended a hand to Lucky. "Okay, shall we?" To everyone else, "See you all later." As soon as Lucky grabbed his hand, the two of them went up in a swirl of lights.

"I've got some things to take care of," Perry muttered, orbing out without so much as a goodbye.

Casey moved to put the dirty pans in the sink only to find Chris staring at her. She smiled at him, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Can I help you?"

Chris turned to Molly. "Hey, Molly, can you give us a minute?"

Molly, knowing quite well if anyone could get to the bottom of the tension between Perry and Casey Chris could, gave him a quick peck and a smile. "I promised your Dad I'd help him with a project at Magic School, so I'll just head over there early. I'll see you later." She whispered, "Good luck," before orbing out of the kitchen.

Casey had turned back to the dishes, scrubbing them furiously and refusing to turn her gaze away from the suds in the sink. It wasn't until she felt Chris' hand on hers that she looked up to find his green eyes locked on her with worry. She swallowed, tears already forming in her eyes.

"Casey, what happened?" Chris asked, his voice serious but soft.

She shook her head, returning to the dishes. "I can't talk about it."

"Babe, it's me here," Chris put his hand on her shoulder. "You can tell me anything. You know that. We've been best friends since before we could form sentences. You're the mother of my child. I love you unconditionally, but I need you to be honest with me, or I can't help you."

Casey bit her lip. "What makes you think I need help?"

"Uh, the fact I know you?" he said with a grin. He tilted his head, watching her carefully as he slowly guessed, "Perry's in love with you, isn't he?"

Casey's brown eyes darted up to his face, shocked and sad. Struggling to form words around the lump in her throat, she answered, "You'd have to ask him."

"So, that's a yes?"

She pushed against the edge of the sink with her hands, closing her eyes and feeling so unbelievably tired. When she opened her eyes the world took a violent spin. Her hands slipped from the sink and everything went black. She could vaguely hear Chris call her name as she started sinking to the floor. Then, everything for Casey went silent as unconsciousness claimed her.

TBC . . .


	18. Secrets, Accusations and Lies

Thank you so much to Anthony and Callisto Nicol for your supportive reviews. I was so inspired writing this chapter, I made it extra long.

Hope you enjoy :)

Chapter 18

Chris gently laid Casey down on her bed, sitting next to her on the mattress. When she'd fainted in the kitchen, he'd been thankful for all the years of demon fighting if for no other reason than he'd developed incredibly quick reflexes and was able to catch her before she cracked her head open on the edge of the floating island. Even though her eyelids were already starting to twitch with slow awakening, his heart was still beating hard with worry. He thanked the powers that be Wyatt had offered to take Lucky to school this morning, or his son would have seen his mother collapse. Lucky didn't need to see his mother like this so soon after he'd nearly lost her.

Coffee brown eyes fluttered open looking completely confused, and he released a tension filled breath. When she tried to sit up, Chris gently helped her telling her, "Take it slow. Nice and easy."

"Wh-what happened?"

"You fainted on me." Chris tilted his head to the side, watching her with a studious eye as he questioned, "Something you want to tell me?"

The woman stared at him blankly, clearly not understanding. She opened her mouth to tell him as much when she was suddenly struck with a coughing fit. Painful spasms went through her chest, rattling her small frame. She could feel Chris rubbing circles on her back. Finally, after several long minutes, the coughing relented, but she felt like her lungs were on fire, and it was hard to breathe. She was so incredibly tired . . .

"You okay?" her friend asked, his green eyes brimming with concern.

She rubbed at her chest, forcing a weak smile. "Yeah. Think I just caught a chest cold in the past. I had a coughing spell like this a few days ago." Trying to lighten the mood she corrected, "Well, I guess it would be twenty-three years ago, huh?"

"Funny," he remarked dryly. He frowned, noticing her hair. "I've been meaning to ask - What's with the Rogue look? Does it have anything to do with you passing out?"

She shook her head, self-consciously pushing her white hair back behind her ears. "I don't think so. I, uh, was targeted by Barbas, and it got stuck this way."

"I bet Wyatt could heal it," Chris said. He frowned. "Did he even notice?"

"No, I think he was too focused on my near death to care about my hair. I sort of tried to hide it behind my other hair this morning. I didn't want to freak him out any more than I had." She suddenly gave a great yawn, blinking back the fog that was encroaching on her mind again. She really didn't feel well.

Chris was staring intently at her, worry lining his every feature. "You look exhausted, and I noticed you didn't eat anything at breakfast. When was the last time you had any food?"

She bit her lip as she tried to remember.

Chris narrowed his eyes at her. "The fact you have to think that hard about it does not impress me." Noticing her looking sheepish, his face softened and he let out a sigh. Running a hand through his hair, he said, "Well, at least it explains why you fainted. I honestly was wondering if you and Wyatt had some news."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the last time you fainted on me was when you were first pregnant with Lucky," he explained with a shrug.

All the color drained from Casey's face, her eyes going wide, mouth parting just slightly. She felt as though a bucket of ice water had just been dumped over her head, and her stomach twisted painfully as one thought flashed in her mind like a neon sign: Perry hadn't used protection. Oh god. What if . . .? She swallowed thickly, shaking her head to clear the thought. It wasn't possible. It'd only happened a few days ago. No one could have symptoms that fast. It was just the chest cold, stress, lack of sleep and no food making her feel this way.

"I know you're dead set against marriage, but I didn't think you'd mind having more kids," Chris' voice cut into her thoughts.

The younger witch did a double take, not having completely caught what he'd said. "What? More kids?" Her brain finally caught up to her ears, and she answered softly, "I think I'd like to have kids with Wyatt someday." A painful memory, a secret she'd kept for six years taunted her then: Wyatt couldn't have children. Lucky's future version had told her it was why his uncle would eventually come to resent him.

"Then what was with the face you made at the idea of being pregnant?"

"Just not ready for that yet." It wasn't a total lie.

Chris shot her a dubious look. "But we were super prepared at seventeen? Come on, don't act like I can't read you like a book. This is all about Perry, isn't it?"

"What?" she questioned, blanching.

"He's in love with you," Chris stated. "And I'm guessing he did something about it? Made a pass at you? Maybe even kissed you?" When she blushed, he took it as confirmation. "That's what I thought. You can't think about a future with Wyatt because you're feeling guilty about letting Perry kiss you. Let me see, knowing you like I do, I assume you haven't been sleeping or eating since it happened?"

Desperate to share even a little of the truth with someone, Casey let the tears start forming in her eyes. "I really didn't mean to let it happen, Chris. I swear. Only, now, I can't tell Wyatt. I want to so much, but Perry made me promise I wouldn't. He's afraid Wyatt will never forgive him, and he's been waiting so long to have his brother back I can't mess that up."

Chris folded his arms over his chest. "I get where he's coming from. From what Dad told me, Wyatt was evil, and Perry spent years fighting against him. I can't even imagine being at odds with Wyatt. We've always been tight. To lose that relationship and then have it back but at risk because of one stupid mistake. . ." He shrugged. "I don't know that it's worth it to tell Wyatt. I mean after all, it's obviously not going to happen again, right?"

"Of course not," Casey replied emphatically.

"Then, I guess I have to agree with Perry on this one," Chris said. "Telling Wyatt will just make it that much harder for he and Perry to bridge the gap. Though, he really needs to lay off on the longing gazes, or you two won't have to tell him. Wy's not stupid. He'll notice once the awe of having Perry here wears off. And you," He wagged his finger at his friend, "Need to stop looking like someone skinned your puppy. And take care of yourself. I may not always be around to stop you from breaking your neck when you pass out from malnourishment."

Casey gave a small nod, trying to smile but not quite able to form one. She asked softly, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice, "How do I live with the lie?"

"You love Wyatt," Chris said simply. "Focus on that. Focus on just letting him love you and loving him back. Do whatever you can to make him happy just like he does for you. Move on with your lives and stop worrying so much. After all, it was just one little kiss."

Casey sucked in her lips. One little kiss. God, what she wouldn't have given for that to be the truth.

"I'm going to check with Mom about the restaurant and our business - try to get things back on track with our careers. Why don't you try to get some sleep?" He rose from the mattress and kissed her on the top of the head. "Love you, Case. Feel better, okay?"

"Love you too," she replied. As he left her room and she heard his feet thudding on the attic stairs back up to the kitchen, she closed her eyes, letting the dry sob she'd been holding back escape. She grabbed her pillow and buried her face in it to muffle the sound of her hitched, pained breathing. She felt like she was going to be sick, and she prayed it was from guilt.

After all, it wasn't possible fate would do this to her again, right?

000

Leo Wyatt was pleasantly surprised when someone knocked on his office door at Magic School. He looked up with a large smile on his face, his blue-green eyes twinkling with joy as he took in the sight of his youngest son. Well, he wasn't actually sure if Perry was the youngest or Chris, but in any case, he was thrilled Perry had sought him out.

"Hey, Dad," he half-mumbled, eyes slightly downcast as he stared at his shoes. "Um, can we talk?"

"Absolutely," Leo answered, rising from his chair and moving to usher his son further into the room. He closed the door and gestured for Perry to take a seat across from the large desk. As he maneuvered into his own chair he asked, "What's up, Chris?" He shook his head, smiling, and corrected himself, "I mean Perry."

"You can tell us apart?" Perry asked, the tiniest smile pulling on the corner of his mouth.

Leo locked eyes with his son. "Of course I can. You carry yourself differently than Chris, and your eyes. . ." The headmaster pursed his lips, sorrow flashing across his features. "You've seen and been through a lot, and it shows."

Perry nodded, dropping his gaze to the side. "Yeah."

"So, you said you wanted to talk," Leo said gently, his face full of sympathy as he guessed, "Is it about Casey and Wyatt?"

Perry looked guilt stricken and struggled to lift his eyes up to his father's face. "You remember both timelines, like I do, so that means you remember everything I talked to you about in the version where Casey was there too."

Leo let out a breath, nodding, his eyes still incredibly soft as he gazed on his son. "You didn't know they were together, Perry, but at least now, you can understand why Casey kept rejecting your advances." When Perry winced, Leo misinterpreted it. "I'm sure it hurts, seeing them together, but it really is for the best. They're good for each other."

"Dad," Perry started, looking extremely uncomfortable, "about the kissing I told you about . . . you're not going to say anything, right? I mean, it's like you said, I didn't know any better, and Casey stopped anything from really happening, so . . . no one needs to know, right?"

His father let out a breath, looking less than pleased. "Christopher . . . didn't you learn your lesson about lying after everything that happened in the past? You're a Halliwell. You should know lies have a way of revealing themselves eventually, and the consequences are always worse the longer it waits."

Perry gave a half nod and a shrug, as he asked hopefully, "But it won't come from you, right? It's just hard enough with Wyatt as it is."

"No," Leo relented, sagging a bit in his chair. "If you really feel this is the only way to start fresh with Wyatt . . . I won't say anything."

"Thanks, Dad," he said, a small smile forming.

"I won't say anything, but I do need to have my say." Leo leaned forward, locking his fatherly gaze on his son. "You need to fully let her go. I've known Casey since she was a toddler chasing after Chris and Wyatt, and I've never seen her more herself - never happier - than when she's with Wyatt. Not to mention, your brother happens to be madly in love with her, and if you want the kind of relationship with him I know you do, you can't be secretly pining for his girlfriend."

Perry nodded leaning back in his chair and folding his arms over his chest. He knew his dad was right. Logically, it was obvious. He just wished it didn't hurt so damn much. Then again, what in his life so far hadn't brought him pain? Loss was his constant companion. After all, his dream of marrying his childhood sweetheart died when he was fourteen. His hope of saving the future and returning to marry Bianca had been ripped away too. This was no different. Just another love and another life he wasn't allowed to have.

000

Wyatt Halliwell was nervous. Really, incredibly, stomach churning, nervous. He'd finished his class at Magic School fifteen minutes ago, and he was waiting for Perry to show up, so they could go to lunch. Only, his new brother wasn't here, and he was starting to wonder if maybe he wouldn't come. Maybe, the idea of spending time together was just far too horrifying to him? Maybe Perry was still scared of him? Maybe even hated him?

"Hey."

The Twice Blessed jumped, startled out of his panicked thoughts by the very person he had been thinking about. He turned around to face Perry, who was giving him a look like he was the strangest person on the planet. Wyatt colored fiercely and fidgeted. He was the ruler of the magical community, wielder of Excalibur and the most powerful witch to ever live, but every time he was around Perry he just felt so . . . inadequate. "Hi. Hey. Hi. Uh, that was redundant. I mean, you hungry?"

Perry shoved his hands in his pockets looking the picture of indifferent. "Sure. Yeah, I guess."

"Great," Wyatt clapped his hands. He let his arms swing back down by his sides as he awkwardly realized he had no idea what to say next.

His younger brother glanced around before asking, "So are we waiting for someone else or . . .?"

"No. No one else," Wyatt answered. He frowned as a flash of worry came over him. "Do you want someone else to come? I thought it would just be us, but if you'd be more comfortable-"

Perry held up his hands, a small smile of reassurance forced to his face. "Relax. I was just wondering if we could get going. I'm not real fond of Magic School after the former Headmaster got stab happy."

Wyatt's face fell, his blue eyes melted pools of ice. "I'm so sorry."

"Would you stop doing that?" Perry asked, looking a bit irritated. "I'm getting tired of telling you we're good. I just want us to get to know each other, okay? I can't do that if you keep freaking out every time I talk about my old life."

The older brother blew out a long breath, running a hand through his short blond hair. "You're completely right. I just . . . I feel like you should hate me after everything my other self did to you. I know I'm not him, but you have to admit, I bare a striking resemblance."

"I didn't even hate him," Perry said softly, his green eyes dropping to the floor. His gaze grew distant as he obviously started remembering the brother he'd grown up with, and all they'd been through. "We were close right up until he turned. After he was lost to evil, I had chances to kill him, but . . . I couldn't." He looked up, the green of his eyes unusually dark. "Family is everything."

Wyatt couldn't help but smile. "Mom always says that."

Perry dropped his gaze, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. "So, uh, food?"

"How do you feel about burgers?"

The younger man shrugged, trying to keep up his neutral facade, but his eyes darted up to his brother's face with a touch of hope as he asked, "Do they have good onion rings?"

Wyatt broke out into a huge smile, braving giving Perry's shoulder a squeeze. "Best in the city."

Twenty minutes later the two men were seated at an outdoor cafe, food littering the table. Wyatt had already learned his younger brother had a fondness for appetizers over entrees. He'd gotten a sampler of onion rings, jalapeno poppers and loaded potato bites, and he ate them with extreme gusto like he hadn't had anything like them in years. Wyatt wondered if maybe that was the case. After all, he'd been on the run in his future and too busy for indulgences in the past.

Perry had just put a popper in his mouth when he noticed Wyatt staring at him. He chewed and swallowed looking suddenly wary. "Something wrong?"

"No," Wyatt answered a bit too quickly, "I, uh, was just glad to see you were enjoying the food."

"What do you want to ask, Wyatt?" Perry questioned, giving him a knowing look. Before the other man could feign ignorance, he added, "Your face is an open book, so don't even pretend you're not curious about something."

Wyatt wiped his hands on a napkin as an excuse to buy some time while he figured out how to ask what he wanted to know. "I just, well, I was sort of, kinda wondering . . . what was your world like?"

Perry leaned back in his chair, his face instantly clouding over. For a long while, Wyatt didn't think he was going to answer, but eventually, the younger man let out a breath and answered simply, "Hell." His eyes were locked on the table, harboring a faraway quality. He kept his voice low to avoid being overheard. "The world was burning. Most major cities had been destroyed. He kept certain areas pristine for his followers, but the rest looked like a bomb had gone off. Supplies were hard to come by for anyone not in his service. Magic had been exposed, and he had scientists develop probes to scan for magic. He'd find witches, and if they chose not to join him . . . well, you get the idea."

"Did I hurt you?" Wyatt asked, holding his breath as he waited for the answer.

Perry raised his eyes to his, a sad look in them. "You - _he_ \- was confused. He was always way too serious even as a kid. It was so rare to see him smile. After mom died he got psychotically over protective. I was under constant guard." His eyes flashed with a pain Wyatt didn't understand at the word 'guard'. He cleared his throat. "As the years went on, he got worse. Started thinking it was better to hurt me to keep me in line than risk losing me like Mom."

Wyatt had to fight the urge to apologize again. Instead, with a pale, sad gaze he asked, "How did mom die?"

"A warlock wanted the power to stop time, and he ended up killing her and Casey."

The Twice Blessed winced. He couldn't imagine. Two of the women he loved most just ripped away suddenly and violently. Part of him could understand how he might have come unhinged. Losing them would have been unbearable. "Was that the trigger? Losing mom and the woman I loved?"

Perry dropped his eyes back to the table. "Casey was just a girl - thirteen. You two weren't together. Most of the time you didn't want to have anything to do with her." He tilted his head, frowning, a thought suddenly occurring to him. "You actually went out of your way to avoid Casey in my timeline. You hated when she came over to see me. Always got extra moody. I wonder . . ."

"Wonder what?"

"I wonder if he secretly loved her too."

Wyatt frowned. "Too?"

A strange emotion flashed across Perry's face before he shrugged. "Well, _you_ love her don't you?"

"Oh. Right. Me and evil me." Wyatt chuckled then. "Sounds like a really bad comedy."

Perry smiled at him, half-chuckling too, and Wyatt realized it was the first time he'd heard the young man even come close to laughing. In fact, he wasn't sure he'd seen him smile before. He made a mental note to try to make it happen more often. Perry'd had enough seriousness in his life. Wyatt needed to lighten him up. He deserved to feel happy and loved and . . .

Wyatt nearly choked on his soda as he realized something he should have thought of before. When his younger brother shot him a worried look, he forced a smile to his face that he was certain resembled his Aunt Phoebe's when she was trying to hide a secret.

"I can see your molars. What aren't you saying, Wyatt?" Perry asked, and Wyatt wasn't sure whether the tone was annoyed, amused or both.

He shifted nervously in his chair, picking up several french fries. "These are really good fries." He shoved the entire lot in his mouth, trying to smile through the chewing. Mouth half full, he held the cardboard tray of fries toward Perry, garbling out, "Wan' s'm?"

Perry frowned shaking his head and pushing the tray down with his hand. He looked a little disgusted as he teased, "Do we have the same mother? I'm sure Piper would've killed me if I did that."

Swallowing, Wyatt frowned and responded, "She'd kill you for calling her Piper."

Perry looked a bit sheepish. "Sorry. Old habits."

"Oh, right," Wyatt said with a warm smile. The pride was evident as he continued, "The only Halliwell able to hide his identity in the past. I don't know how you managed. I got pulled into the past by Mom a while back, and I had such a hard time not telling them all about the future. Lucky for me, you drilled the phrase 'future consequences' into their heads, and they stopped me."

The young man tilted his head, another unfamiliar expression crossing his face. It was strange to Wyatt how many different looks a face he'd kind of grown up with could have he'd never seen before. Interrupting the thought, Perry suddenly asked, "Just out of curiosity when you were in the past, did any of them hit on you?"

Wyatt's eyebrows went up. "Uh, no. They pretty much knew who I was right away. Why would . . . wait." He leaned forward looking far too amused. "Someone hit on you! Who? Who hit on you?" He pulled a face. "Oh god, please, tell me it wasn't Mom."

"Because any of them is a pleasant thought?" Perry shot back wryly.

"Oh come on, it's kinda funny," Wyatt argued lightly. "Like that classic movie Aunt Paige loves - _Back to the Future_. Please, tell me? We can tease the person forever about it, isn't that worth it?"

Perry shook his head, smiling before finally giving in. "Phoebe. She even asked me if she had when she found out who I was, but I told her she didn't to make her feel better."

"I remember Mom saying Aunt Phoebe was always boy crazy, but I can't believe she hit on her own nephew. In our family you should know better than to flirt with people from a different time. They are almost always relatives," Wyatt said chuckling. After taking a sip of his soda, he asked, "How about Aunt Paige? Any weirdness there? Dad said she used to be a bit wild."

"Not really, though, I think I know what having an older sister would feel like," Perry admitted. "We bickered a lot. The only creepy thing with her was because of those three blondes. Now _that_ was traumatizing." Off Wyatt's amused and curious expression, he explained, "These three witches had stolen their identities, and the two pretending to be Phoebe and Paige kept making passes at me, and because of the identity spell, I didn't know it wasn't them, so I was really starting to get a complex when every time I orbed over to the manor one of them was trying to drape themselves on me."

Wyatt pulled a face, just imagining how he would feel in that situation. "What did you do?"

"Once I figured it out, in order to sever their power of three, I, uh, well, I sort of kissed the one that, in my head, looked like Aunt Phoebe to cause a fight. I knew with a fair amount of certainty it really _wasn't_ Aunt Phoebe, but still . . ." He shuddered. "I can't describe how disturbing it was while the identity spell was still up."

At the look on his little brother's face, Wyatt burst out laughing. In between breathless laughs, Wyatt gasped, "So gross. You frenched Aunt Pheebs." Then, he put his head down on the table, hitting it lightly with a fist repeatedly.

"I did not french Aunt Phoebe," Perry defended. He noticed someone at the next table giving him a very shocked and somewhat horrified look. Turning back to his brother and seeing Wyatt still dying of amusement, he couldn't help laughing too, realizing just how messed up their family really was that they could even _have_ this conversation.

The Twice Blessed's master plan to loosen up his little brother was well on its way. The two shared a good long laugh. Once both men had sobered, the older of the two noticed the sudden thoughtful look on his brother's face. "Perry?"

"Not that I didn't appreciate the lighter detour, but I'm not easily distracted, and I have an excellent memory," Perry said. He leaned back in his chair, arms folding. "What were you trying to hide earlier? When you were shoving fries in your mouth."

Wyatt pursed his lips, trying to figure out the best way to go about broaching the topic. He didn't really want to. They were finally having fun. He couldn't lie though. Firstly, because he was terrible at it, and secondly, he needed Perry to feel safe with him - to trust him. After deliberating a moment, he let out a breath and his face fell to uncharacteristic seriousness. His voice was soft as he explained, "Mom and Dad told me as much as they knew about you and your life . . . including Bianca."

Perry's face turned to stone, but his brother recognized the pain flashing in his eyes just as he would have in Chris'. The Elder's voice held a sudden rough quality as he asked, "You wanna know if you killed her? If I blame you?"

"I think I already know the answer to the first question," Wyatt said, sorrow and guilt on his face. "For what it's worth, I'm so sorry."

"Stop. Saying. That," Perry growled. "Just . . ." His face broke, and he squeezed his eyes shut. His voice came out so tired when he pleaded, "Please, drop it. She was my everything for such a long time, but now, thinking about her . . . I can't _breathe._ "

Wyatt winced, his chest constricting as he saw the man he'd come to view as a strong, unflappable hero cracked in front of him. He hesitated for a moment before offering, "She's not dead, Perry. Not in this timeline."

Perry laughed, a harsh, unpleasant sound this time. "Of course, she's dead, Wyatt. The woman I loved doesn't exist here. Hell, she could be married to someone else and have a couple kids for all I know. And even if she doesn't, she won't be the same. She won't know me. Seeing her look so much like _my_ Bianca, and not having her know what we meant to each other - how much I loved her and she loved me . . . God help me, I think that might actually hurt more than if she were dead."

"Perry . . ." Wyatt breathed, seeing the heart wrenching pain in his brother's eyes.

His sibling pushed back his chair, standing from the table. "Thanks for lunch, Wyatt. I, uh, I need to go."

Wyatt watched as his little brother practically ran away, disappearing around the corner of the building where he was likely orbing away. He let out a breath, feeling completely miserable. There had been a moment when they'd been like real brothers. Now, he'd ruined it. It's just, he'd thought he could give Perry hope by telling him he could get in contact with Bianca, but now? He was fairly certain seeing the Phoenix was the last thing Perry needed.

000

P3 was even busier than normal tonight. The line to get in was wrapping around the street as music blared from inside. Molly was grateful she didn't have to wait in the line, especially considering she had suffered from temporary insanity and opted for silver heels to go with her navy blue wrap dress. She supposed the sore feet were worth it when Chris' eyes kept raking over her the way they were, and his hands were always finding a way to touch her. Like how he kept his hand on the small of her back guiding her into the club after the others.

Walking down the stairs, they were met by Wyatt's head bartender, Chloe. The tall, thin blonde had her hair pulled into a messy bun, a stylish black wardrobe accenting her curves. Her grey eyes lit up behind her smart looking black framed glasses. They were focused on Perry. She blushed before turning to Wyatt. "Hey, Boss. I saved your favorite table."

"Thanks, Chloe. You're the best."

"So a raise?"

He laughed. "We'll see."

Chloe turned to Chris, Casey and Perry. "Wyatt said you guys were on some sort of mission trip the last months?"

Casey and Chris hadn't even formulated a thought before Perry was already smoothly answering, "Yeah, building houses in Costa Rica. Felt good to help, ya know?"

"Wow, that's so giving," she said, looking up at him bashfully behind her glasses. She moved a bit closer to Perry, smiling coyly, "Think you might save me a dance later, Perry?"

He smiled nervously. "Uh, sure."

Chloe shot to everyone else, "Have fun. Need anything just let me know."

"Thanks, Chloe," Wyatt said, his eyebrows raised at her overly flirtatious behavior. He turned to Perry. "How did she know who you were?"

"Elders altered memories, remember?" Perry answered. "As far as the rest of the world knows, I've always been around."

The group moved over to the family's traditional spot, and as everyone else got situated, Wyatt stayed standing. "So, what does everyone want? Casey I know you want a long island. Molly you want a chocolate martini?" Off her nod, "Okay, Chris? Perry?"

"Beer sounds good," Chris said. "Surprise me on what kind."

"Jack and Coke," Perry told him.

Wyatt took off to fetch the drinks, disappearing amongst the throngs of people. When he returned five minutes later with a tray of their beverages, they all sat around drinking and talking and laughing. Even Perry seemed to be loosening up a bit, chuckling here and there at random anecdotes from Chris and Wyatt's childhood. They had just finished telling Perry about how Molly and Chris had first gotten together, and he'd found her rescue of his counterpart quite amusing.

"She saved you with a sharpie," he chortled. "I love it." He leaned back a bit in the booth, his head tilting as he observed the happy couple. Chris' arm was wrapped around Molly, the woman snuggled against his side. "You guys are cute. Like actual real-life high school sweethearts, meant to be together forever _cute_. It's sweet."

Chris wrinkled his nose. "Should I be insulted? Cute? Really?"

"It's a good thing," Perry said solemnly. "No one gets hurt from cute and sweet."

Casey stared at her drink, holding the ice cold glass in her hands. She seemed lost in thought. So much so, Molly hadn't actually seen her so much as take a sip yet. The normally vivacious woman was still acting so . . . sullen. She edged a look to Chris and found him giving her a worried smile. Whatever was going on wasn't good.

"So, you guys have any idea when the big day will be?" Wyatt wondered. "Obviously, you are more than welcome to have the reception here if you want."

"Thanks, Wy." Chris slid a look to Molly. "Still thinking what we had in mind last night?" When she gave a big smile and nodded, he answered, "One month from this Saturday. We don't want to waste any time, and we don't want a big fancy wedding, so it should be doable."

Molly looked to Casey. "I was hoping to go try on some dresses this weekend. I already checked with the sisters, and they're in, but I don't want to do it without my maid of honor, so . . . you free?"

Casey's face broke into the first big smile she'd had since she'd returned from the past. Her face was full of unbridled joy and excitement, and she practically hurled herself at Molly, hugging her tightly. " _Sí_! _Por supuesto_! Oh my gosh, I can't believe you want me to be your maid of honor. I swear, I won't let you down. Whatever you need I'm your girl. Oh, plus, catering. All over that."

"I can do the food," Chris argued.

Both women responded simultaneously, "No, you can't." "Not for your own wedding, _Baboso_."

Chris rolled his eyes. "Is this a preview of the rest of my life? You two ganging up on me?"

Wyatt and Perry simultaneously replied, "No one to blame but yourself." "Better get used to it, Man."

"Gee, thanks," Chris shot to his brothers before taking a swig from his beer.

An old song from when they were kids, Gangnam Style, started playing on the stereo system, and Wyatt immediately grew a huge smile turning excitedly to Casey. The large man was practically bouncing as he asked, "Dance with me?"

Her face melted into a loving smile at the sight of his enthusiasm. She held out her hand for him to take while replying, "Always."

As he took her out on the dance floor, Molly watched Perry's eyes track them. He was hard for her to read. She always thought Chris could hide his emotions pretty well when he wanted, but he was an amateur compared to Perry. The Elder could put a wall up like none other. Except at the moment, as he watched Casey and Wyatt dancing, Molly was positive she could see a strange mixture of sorrow and happiness.

"I really hate this song," Chris lamented. "He used to play it over and over and over when we were kids."

"It may be the most ridiculous song ever," Perry agreed, finishing his drink. Gesturing with his empty glass toward Wyatt, "He knows he can't dance, right?"

Chris took a swig from his beer before answering with a smile, "Yeah, he just doesn't care."

As Wyatt danced to the silly song, even attempting some of the embarrassing choreography from when it came out many years ago, Casey, who was wearing the green dress Wyatt had requested, laughed and played right along with him. Pretty soon, others were following suit, remembering the fun they had at the fad song when it had first come out. The floor was quickly full of people laughing, trying to sing along and making fools of themselves.

Perry shook his head, looking slightly in shock. "He's kind of contagious, isn't he?"

"Our own little embarrassing ray of sunshine," Chris confirmed.

The song eventually ended, falling way to something slower, more romantic. Wyatt wrapped his arms around Casey, pulling her tightly against him. His head bowed down to whisper something in her ear before he stole a kiss, which was clearly deep and passionate.

"I need another drink," Perry announced rising from the booth. He turned to the other two. "Can I grab you guys another?"

"Same for me," Chris responded.

Molly shook her head. "Better not. I'm designated orber."

Perry's lips turned into a slow smile. "Designated . . . okay. Never heard that one before. Clever. Anyway, be right back."

As Perry walked over to the bar, Molly turned to Chris only to find herself pulled into a body melting kiss. She let out a satisfied little sigh as they pulled apart. She brushed his bangs from his eyes and smiled brightly. "God, I missed you."

"Well, you'll never have to again," Chris told her, taking her left hand and kissing it. He then wiggled it playfully, indicating the ring on her finger. "In one month, you'll be stuck with me for good."

"I can't wait." She kissed him again to prove it, her hands raking through his silky hair.

Chris was grinning mischievously at her as the kiss ended. "We're totally that obnoxious engaged couple, you know. Making out in public like a couple of teenagers. Not that I'm complaining just thinking maybe we should duck out early? Avoid the dirty looks from all the singles in here and go to your apartment?" His finger feathered over the v-neck of her dress, hooking the soft fabric and heading downward, "I can unwrap this pretty blue dress . . ."

Molly blushed bright red all the way to her ears. "Christopher Halliwell, you are a very bad man. This isn't just about us. We're supposed to be getting to know your sorta surly new brother." Her voice dipped and she added, "Speaking of which, what did you find out about him and Casey?"

"Nothing good . . ."

As Chris went on to explain what he'd found out, on the other side of the club over by the bar, Wyatt and Casey were slow dancing, her head on his chest and the most contented smile on her face. She had missed this so much. Just being in Wyatt's arms made her feel safe and loved - like nothing could ever hurt her and the world was happy and warm and wonderful.

"You ever planning on telling me what happened to your hair?" Wyatt asked, trying to hide his worry behind a playful tone.

Casey looked up, startled out of her dreamy thoughts. "Hm? Oh, right. Uh, Barbas happened."

Wyatt immediately stopped dancing, his face full of worry. He gently guided her from the dance floor over toward an open space by the bar. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't it heal last night with everything else?"

"Lucky said it was permanent. Like a magical scar." She worried her lip nervously as she asked, "Do you think it's ugly?"

The Twice Blessed lovingly twisted a strand of the white hair around his finger, gently smiling down on her. "Nothing about you could ever be ugly to me."

Touched by the comment, Casey thought for the millionth time how very undeserving of this man's love she was. He was too good for her. Too sweet and handsome and romantic and strong and perfect for a wretched person like her. She hadn't realized tears had formed until Wyatt's blue eyes became pools of worry, his thumb lightly brushing a stray tear from her cheek.

"Angel, what's wrong?" his voice questioned, thick with love and concern.

"I have to tell you . . ." She nearly choked on the lump in her throat. Then, she caught Perry standing at the bar, his green eyes shooting daggers in her direction. He shook his head, his jaw so tight she could see it twitching. She dropped her eyes to the floor.

Wyatt instantly lifted her chin with his fingers. "Hey, talk to me. What's wrong? What do you keep saying you need to tell me and then not?"

Casey was not a great liar, so she ended up saying the first thing that popped in her head. "I, uh, haven't been feeling well lately. I fainted this morning."

"You what?" Wyatt cried, instantly grabbing the top of her arms, as though afraid she might collapse again right then and there if he didn't help hold her up.

She didn't fail to notice Perry's angry mask slip into anxiety as he continued to stare at them under the pretense of getting more drinks. Maybe he didn't hate her. Part of her really, really wished he would. If Wyatt wasn't allowed to, someone needed to loathe her for the horrible person she'd become.

Wyatt had been rambling worriedly at her, but she only caught the last part of his lecture when he said, "We should get you to bed."

Reflex kicked in as she responded, "Are you propositioning me, Wyatt Halliwell?"

The Twice Blessed smirked at her. "Under normal circumstances I would love to. You have _no_ idea how much I've missed being with you, but you're obviously not feeling well. I mean people don't normally faint, Casey. In fact, the last time you fainted you . . ." His voice trailed off as a sort of shock flashed on his face. ". . . you were pregnant with Lucky. Now, you haven't touched your drink all night."

Casey tensed, knowing where he was going and wishing to whatever power was listening he wouldn't. Her eyes slid to Perry who'd paled dramatically, his hands shaking just slightly as he picked up the drinks he'd ordered from the bar top.

Wyatt's expression as the idea fully struck him would have put the sun to shame. Joy didn't come near close enough to describing it. "Casey . . . are we having a baby?"

It was about that time Perry ran smack into another patron, drinks clattering loudly to the floor as people cheered, clapped and laughed. The younger man's eyes met Wyatt's, and there was so much guilt in his expression that Wyatt instantly moved to his side.

"I'm so sorry," Perry mumbled. He gestured to the broken glasses. "I'm such a klutz."

"Don't worry about it," Wyatt waved him off. "Happens all the time." He looked over to the bar. "Hey, Chloe, can I get the broom?" He returned a reassuring smile to Perry. "I've got this. Really not a big deal. I promise."

"Thanks, Man," Perry responded, smiling back.

Leaving Wyatt busy cleaning the mess, Perry immediately headed to Casey. His eyes were flashing darkly, his voice steely and low enough no one else could hear. "Tell me you weren't pregnant with my brother's child when we . . ."

For some reason, as much as she'd wished for his hatred a moment ago, the accusation hurt more than she'd expected. Perhaps, it was because she knew without any shadow of a doubt she'd have to rip Wyatt's heart clean from his chest no matter what now. Maybe, it was because she partially blamed Perry for the mess her life was becoming. Either way, she was suddenly furious with him. "Screw you. No. I _wasn't_ pregnant."

Her words hit him like a slap in the face, momentarily stunning him. Recovering quickly, he forcefully whispered in her ear, "We only had sex two days ago. There's no way to have symptoms that fast. He's wrong. You cannot be pregnant, right?"

Casey refused to look at him, setting her jaw and staring fixedly at the floor.

Nearly panicked, Perry demanded, "Damn it, Casey, say something."

" _Chingate, Cabron_ ," she spat, her brown eyes flashing. "You're the one who keeps telling me I can't talk about it. To hide it. So I will. Whatever the consequences, you have no obligation to me."

Casey moved to get away from him, but he caught her arm. She tried to pull away, but his grip was too strong. Fueled by fear and rage and pain, she kept struggling. "I swear, if you don't let me go right now, I will punch you in the throat."

"My, my," a sultry alto voice commented from behind Perry. "Still have such a way with the ladies, don't you, Chris?"

Casey turned to find a gorgeous woman leaning against the bar behind them. Long, silky brown hair, tan, flawless skin, a killer body currently being flaunted in a red halter top and white mini skirt, and an exotic face with big brown eyes and a flirtatious smirk.

"I guess it's Perry now, though, isn't it?" she added, wryly, casually tossing her hair back behind her shoulder.

Perry's hand instantly fell from Casey's arm. The strength and control he normally exuded melted from him completely. His face had gone ghostly pale, his lips parting with a shaky inhale. Casey's anger disappeared entirely as she saw his eyes start to drown in emotions - panic, fear, love, pain, hope, and others she couldn't even name. He turned around almost robotically, and his voice was rough and broken as he breathed one word.

"Bianca?"

TBC . . .


	19. Stitches

Thank you sooo much to sise87 and Anthony for your reviews. Can't say enough how much they help me keep writing this story.

Couple things: One, there is a fairly steamy scene in this chapter. If you don't like that sort of thing, once Chris and Bianca are in the statue garden - skip ahead. You won't miss anything major. Second, the song lyrics at the end are from Shawn Mendes' Stitches. I don't own 'em. Some dialogue from Chris Crossed too.

Chapter 19

Perry felt like time had stopped. He no longer saw the hordes of people dancing and drinking around him. He didn't hear the music blaring. He couldn't move except to blink. So many emotions were hitting him, he couldn't think, could barely keep breathing. Pain, confusion, hope, guilt, anxiety - but above all else - deep, passionate love. His heart was spasming painfully in his chest as though it recognized its other half and was trying to break free to reach her. Bianca. Just as beautiful as he remembered her. So many memories came flooding back to him . . .

" _I don't need a babysitter, Wyatt," his eighteen year old self complained standing in the doorway of Wyatt's office at his newly acquired penthouse in downtown San Francisco._

 _Wyatt glanced up from his desk, his blue eyes flashing with frustration. "You know how tumultuous times are right now, Chris. I can't very well have my baby brother running around unprotected. There are too many factions below and above who haven't grasped my ultimate plan yet."_

" _World domination?" the younger man quipped, bitingly._

" _World peace," Wyatt replied, clearly irritated. He rose from his chair and slowly stalked over to his sibling. He put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm doing this for us. For our family. No more Halliwells have to die for archaic concepts. I'm going to bring the entire magical community together just as was prophesied."_

 _Perry rolled his eyes. "Pretty sure they didn't mean demons."_

" _I know this is hard for you to grasp. Good versus evil has been drilled into your head since infancy, but I promise you, Little Brother, I know what I'm doing. We're going to make the world a better place. Together, you and I are going accomplish great things."_

 _Green eyes narrowed. "Then, you agree I'm a powerful witch in my own right, and clearly, don't need some lackey following me around day and night."_

 _Wyatt grinned. "I don't think you'd mind if this one hung around at night." He called out, "Bianca!"_

 _The air shimmered forming into a petite woman wearing black slacks and a deep green tank top with lace edging. Chris' breath caught. For a split moment, he thought his dead girlfriend had been resurrected, and he almost breathed out her name, but then, reason slowly returned. Casey was dead. She wasn't coming back. This demon must be Bianca, whoever that was._

" _Sire," Bianca greeted, bowing her head slightly._

" _Bianca, this is Chris," Wyatt gestured to Perry. "You will be his personal guard and trainer."_

 _The younger man couldn't help but feel a bit amused when he realized he and Bianca were shooting his brother identical annoyed looks. She questioned levelly, "You want me to guard your brother? He's the second most powerful witch in existence. Isn't that a bit . . . unnecessary?"_

 _Perry couldn't help but shoot Wyatt a triumphant smirk, which made the soon to be Source glare at him. He also found he kind of liked this Bianca woman. Smart, not easily intimidated and she wasn't exactly hard on the eyes._

" _He's a high priced target for many," Wyatt replied coolly. "Train him in martial arts. His magic alone may not always be enough." He gave them both stern looks. "No arguing."_

" _Wouldn't dream of it, Sire," Bianca replied, the sarcasm evident._

 _Now, Perry was certain they would get along just fine. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad._

 _Six months later . . ._

 _This sucks was the only thought Perry had as he landed hard on his back yet again. His head cracked onto the ground. He winced from pain and wondered how big a goose egg he'd have to go along with what was sure to be an impressive amount of bruising. He was about to roll back to his feet but never got the chance. In a flash, Bianca had him pinned with an athame to his throat. Her brown eyes were narrowed, her face pinched into an irritated scowl. Her silky voice growled, "You're not even trying."_

" _Excuse me, but not all of us are trained assassins," he snapped back. They'd been at this for an hour, and she'd already pinned him five times. He was tired and sore and getting frustrated._

" _You are one of the fastest, most gifted students I've ever had," Bianca countered, "but today it's like we're starting from scratch. What is the matter with you?"_

 _Perry shoved her off and rose to his feet mumbling, "Nothing."_

 _Bianca flipped to her feet, grabbed his arm and spun him back toward her. "Not nothing. Distraction like this can get you killed out there. It's my job to make sure that doesn't happen."_

" _Your job." He shook his head, his green eyes growing unusually bright. "Right. Forgot. That's all I am to you."_

 _She folded her arms over her chest, regarding him carefully. "What else should you be to me?"_

" _I just thought . . ." He shrugged, his face flushing with sudden embarrassment. "We spend practically every day together. Hell, half the time you sleep at our house because Wyatt's in meetings and refuses to let me be alone despite the fact not only am I grown man but also a powerful witch. I figured maybe after all this time, we were, I don't know, friends?"_

" _Friends?" she repeated, the corner of her mouth turning up. She tossed her hair behind her shoulder and asked casually, "Well, if we're friends then shouldn't you tell me what's wrong?"_

 _Perry leveled a look at her. "Nice. I see what you did there." He ran a hand through his hair and let out a long breath. Despite great effort to stop it from happening, his voice cracked as he admitted, "It's the anniversary of the worst day of my life. Five years ago today, a warlock killed my mom and my girlfriend."_

" _I'm so sorry, Chris." Her eyes dipped. "I know what it's like to lose a mom."_

" _Then I'm sorry too," Perry told her softly._

 _She cleared her throat of emotion before saying, "This is going to sound odd, but my clan actually studies your family. Part of their survival training. Growing up, I'd always thought if she didn't try to vanquish me, I would have liked to meet Piper Halliwell. She seemed tough but fair."_

 _The young man smiled a bit sadly. "She was. Mom was amazing. She was tiny but she could even get Wyatt to cower with a single look. She always wanted us to have as normal a childhood as possible, so she'd go out of her way to make that happen. Family trips, game nights, and cookies with milk after school. God, she made the best cookies. They were peanut butter with M &Ms and Reeces Pieces. Wyatt didn't like them. He liked oatmeal. Mom always made both. She never wanted one of us to feel less important than the other." He stared down at his shoes, struggling with his emotions. "I miss her so much. She'd know what to do about Wyatt."_

 _Bianca gestured for him to take a seat on the long wooden bench sitting against the wall of the training room. Once he'd flopped down on it, she took a seat next to him. She asked cautiously, "You don't agree with what your brother is doing?"_

" _No."_

" _May I ask why not?"_

 _He slid a look over to her. "Have you looked outside? Have you talked to anyone? He's used his power to destroy cities, terrify everyone into submission. I even hear he's trying to find a way to track witches. He's become totally obsessed with power and control." He dropped his head admitting, "Sometimes, he scares me because I don't think there's a line he won't cross anymore."_

" _Wyatt seems to love you," Bianca challenged gently. "I wouldn't be here otherwise. He wants to make sure you're safe. Doesn't that mean anything?"_

 _Perry pursed his lips, considering. After a moment, he let out a tired breath. "Maybe. I mean, I get it. I do. After mom died, Wyatt became responsible for me, and I think he still sees me as that broken fourteen year old kid. I think after we lost everyone in such a short time span, it did something to him. He just . . . snapped."_

" _I'm surprised you didn't too," she commented. "You lost practically your whole family that year. Your girlfriend too."_

" _I was pretty messed up for a long time," he admitted. "Did some things I'm not proud of, but Wyatt helped me get through it. It's why even though I don't agree with what he's doing, I'm not bailing on him. We're family, and family means everything."_

" _I think your mom would be really proud of you for staying by his side. I'm sure she'd want you to stick together."_

" _Yeah," he agreed absently. He raked his hand through his hair. "Listen, is it okay if we call it quits for the day? I'm really not up for sparring with you, especially considering you-" Perry cut himself off, his eyes making every effort not to look at her._

" _Considering I . . . ?"_

 _Perry lowered his eyes and his voice was so quiet she almost didn't hear him as he confessed, "You look so much like Casey."_

" _Was she your girlfriend?" When he nodded, she pursed her lips, taking in the information. After a moment, she hesitantly asked, "Did you love her?"_

 _His eyes had grown distant, clearly thinking about the girl he'd lost. His voice was laced with emotion when he finally answered, "Yeah. I know we were just kids, but I really thought we'd be together forever." He turned to give an almost embarrassed look to Bianca. "You probably think that's stupid."_

" _No," she answered slowly. "I don't understand it, but I don't think you're stupid."_

" _Have you ever been in love?"_

" _No," she answered honestly. "Love is weakness. In my line of work, I can't afford it."_

" _Bianca, love is not a disability," Chris argued passionately. "It can give you strength. Hope. Purpose."_

 _The assassin cocked her head to the side, studying him a moment. Her brown eyes flashed with intense sorrow. Normally, she hid her feelings from him, but today, her mask didn't go back up. Instead, in a broken whisper she confessed, "I wish I could believe that, Chris."_

 _Nine months later . . ._

" _You, idiot!" Bianca ranted, ramming Perry into the ground just as a fireball went soaring above their heads. She turned to shoot an energy ball at the demon, who exploded in a glorious pyrotechnic display. All the demons vanquished, she shimmered the two of them out of the underworld to a small statue garden they had stumbled on during a walk a few weeks ago._

 _As they materialized on a stone bench, Perry winced. "I really hate when you do that."_

" _I really hate when you're reckless," she shot back glaring down at him. "What the hell were you thinking? Do you have any idea what your brother is going to do when he finds out?"_

 _Perry flipped their positions, causing them to tumble off the bench with a thud, making her grunt. Pinning her arms with his hands, he used his weight to trap her legs. "Who exactly is going to tell him?"_

" _He's my boss," she retorted. "If he finds out I knew you were vanquishing his demons, he'll have my head."_

" _Just more incentive not to tell him."_

 _Bianca rolled her eyes. "Not many witches left powerful enough to vanquish those demons, Chris. Not to mention you've become just as famous as your brother. It's only a matter of time before they recognize you and tell Wyatt, and you know what he'll think."_

" _You think I give a damn?" Perry scoffed as he released her and rose to his feet. He started pacing, agitated. "Wyatt's gone off the deep end. The brother I knew is long gone. Hell, he's already destroyed half the world, and family means less to him every day."_

" _I heard he hurt you," she said, sitting up and jumping to her feet. "What happened?"_

 _The man's eyes clouded over. "I saved a witch who refused to join him. He found out. We fought. I said something to really piss him off, and he used his powers on me . . . like I was nothing to him."_

" _How badly hurt were you?" Bianca asked, genuine concern marking her features._

 _Perry crossed his arms, shrugging. "Doesn't matter. He got a whitelighter to heal me. Seems he no longer has the ability to do it himself. Just another sign he's not capable of love anymore, but, oh no, he's not evil. No such thing."_

" _Even if he won't admit it, you've known he was evil for a while now," Bianca pointed out. She asked a bit irritated, "Why risk pissing him off considering what he can do. What are you trying to prove, Chris?"_

" _My family used to be a beacon of hope, and now, people hear I'm a Halliwell and quiver in fear. Do you have any idea what that feels like?" He started gesturing wildly, growing more worked up. "He has turned against everything my family fought for. Everything we were taught about magic and family. My mother and her sisters have to be rolling in their graves."_

 _Bianca sighed. "I'm sorry, but what you're doing is foolish. Defying him will only end badly."_

" _I'm one of the last Halliwells standing. I'm not going to abandon people who need my help."_

" _They'd leave you to die in a heartbeat," she spat. "The world isn't what it was. Good and evil aren't the teams anymore. It's everyone for themselves. It's about survival, and if you had any common sense, you'd join Wyatt. He cares about you in his own twisted way. He wants to protect you."_

 _Perry rolled his eyes. "Yeah? Who's going to protect me from him? Thanks but no thanks."_

 _The Phoenix let out a low growl of frustration. "Reckless, naive and stubborn. It's going to get you killed, Chris."_

" _Can't have that, right?" he replied, sarcasm dripping. "Wouldn't want you to fail at your job."_

 _Her brown eyes locked on his green and a shiver ran through his entire body at the intensity in her gaze. She moved directly in front of him, so close they were almost touching. She looked up at him through thick black lashes, "Do you really think you're just a job to me?"_

" _Don't," he barked sharply. "I know the truth now. All those late night talks about how my mother would want Wyatt and me on the same side. How the Elders don't care about us as proven by my no show father. How caring about others makes you vulnerable. The kiss you laid on me a few weeks ago, and your little speech just now . . . it was all part of Wyatt's plan. You've been playing me from day one. Pretending to be my friend and flirting with me to try to manipulate me. Wyatt chose you because you looked like the girl I loved. He chose you to try to turn me. Guess what? It will never happen. Some pretty face isn't going to make me betray my family's legacy."_

" _What has your family's legacy ever done except get them killed?" she replied darkly. "Yes, Wyatt wanted me to get you to see things his way. He has all these plans for you, Chris." Off his angry, bitter head shake, "I don't care about any of that. Not anymore. I just want you safe. Don't you get it? I don't want anything to happen to you, and if you go against Wyatt, you'll lose, and I . . . I can't. . ."_

 _He set his jaw, half-glaring at her. "You can't what?"_

" _I can't lose you," she snapped. She practically threw herself in his arms, pulling him down for a hard, deep kiss. They were a bit off balance, and Perry wound up hitting his back against one of the old, broken statues._

 _Perry had fallen for Bianca a long time ago, but he'd always assumed it was unrequited. She'd always seemed to view him as a kid. Then, when he'd found out she'd been trying to turn him, he tried to push his feelings for her down. Bury them. Lock them away. Now, feeling her unbridled passion, he couldn't fight it._

 _The young man moved a hand behind Bianca's head, tangling it in her hair as he returned her kisses with equal fervor. He'd never kissed anyone like this before. With Casey kissing had been innocent and sweet - friends testing the waters of something more. With Bianca it was pure, unadulterated heat. She made him feel like he might explode if they stopped. Every inch of his skin was on fire, and the only way to put it out was by pressing it against Bianca's body._

 _He didn't remember moving to the stone bench. All he could think about were her lips on his skin and his hands exploring her perfect body. She pushed up his shirt, her nails raking over his chest making him moan and pull her down for a deeper kiss. God, she was driving him insane. Moist kisses on his neck, chest and slowly moving lower. When she reached the waistband of his pants, he was pretty sure he may have actually blacked out._

 _Bianca had not been a gentle lover. She'd nipped and scratched and everything was hard and fast. Instead of taking the time to go somewhere private, she'd hiked up her skirt and straddled him on the bench, unconcerned about the fact they were in the middle of the city and anyone could show up at any time. He wasn't thinking clearly enough to worry about it either. All he could think about was the painful need he had for her. As they reached their peaks, she dug her fingernails into his shoulders and he cried out both in pain and extreme pleasure._

 _When they had finished, Perry gently pushed her hair back behind her ear. "Bianca, I lo-"_

" _-Don't say it," the woman ordered harshly, but he would have sworn her voice nearly cracked. She slipped off him, straightening her clothes. Before he could utter another word, she'd shimmered away._

 _Perry leaned his head back against the cold bench, closing his eyes. Not exactly how he thought his first time would be._

 _Seven months later . . ._

 _Joining the resistance had been the hardest decision Perry had ever made, but for the first time in a long time, he felt like maybe his life held a purpose. He was giving people hope and saving lives and finally, finally being a Halliwell. Even down to the dating a demon . . . sort of._

 _Bianca would probably have his head if he called her his girlfriend. While they had sex on a regular basis, and she'd occasionally take things slow and soft - even stayed the night from time to time - she still wouldn't let him say he loved her. Not that he didn't keep trying. He loved her more every day. Especially once she'd joined the resistance too. It'd been a huge leap of faith on her part, but she finally believed him when he told her they could make things better._

 _He was studying various scouting reports when she shimmered into his apartment. He glanced up from his papers to have his eyebrows instantly shoot up, his mouth falling open before quirking into an amused smirk._

" _Say one word, and I break your jaw," Bianca informed him. She was wearing a leather jumpsuit, which clung to all of her curves. The front was held together with thick silver buckles leaving enough openings to leave very little to the imagination. "Your brother thinks this is a suitable uniform."_

 _Perry pursed his lips, trying not to laugh._

 _She plopped down onto his sofa. "Do you have food? I'm starving."_

" _I have chips and dip." He couldn't help but quip, "I assume you have the chains and whips?"_

 _A pillow smacked him square in the face, which only made him laugh. He was pleased to find she was smiling. The bright, toothy smile Perry loved. She so rarely let anyone see her smile, and it could light up a room. At least he thought so._

" _I look like a demonatrix," she complained with a small pout._

" _Mhmm," he agreed, tilting his head as he appreciated the view._

 _She half glared and half smiled at him. "You can't seriously find this a turn on."_

" _Well, Mistress Bianca, I have been a very bad boy lately," he replied cheekily. "I think I may need to be punished." He couldn't keep a straight face as he said it and broke into full laughter as she chucked another pillow at him._

 _Rolling her eyes and laughing too, she bemoaned without thinking, "How did I fall in love with such a smartass?"_

 _Perry instantly stopped laughing, holding his breath to see if she realized what she'd said. Her mouth fell open, and she blinked for a very long time. When the silence stretched on too long, he said softly, "It's okay. It doesn't have to mean anything, Bianca."_

 _Her brown eyes darted up to his face. She slowly rose from the couch, keeping her gaze locked on him as she moved steadily to stand in front of him. For a long while she just silently stared at him. Tears formed in her eyes as she quietly said, "Damn you, Halliwell. Look at what you've done to me. You made me fall in love."_

 _Perry had never smiled quite as wide or as brightly as he had at those words. Then, for the first time, they truly made love. Not only did she spend the night, Bianca stayed most of the next day too. Though, they'd barely left the confines of the bedroom the whole time she was there._

 _Eighteen months later . . ._

" _Chris!"_

 _Bianca's voice rang in his head and he orbed without question. When he reformed, he thought his heart may stop. Bianca was lying on the street, a gaping hole in her stomach where she'd been impaled by something. So much blood flowing from around her. She was so pale. Her face was glistening with sweat, and as he moved to hold her, she was shaking uncontrollably. Just like Casey had . . . No. He was_ _ **not**_ _losing Bianca too._

" _I d-don't want to d-die a-alone," she struggled to tell him._

 _Perry shook his head. "You are not dying, Baby. You're going to be just fine. I promise."_

 _Putting a hand on her shoulder, he orbed them both to one of the resistance outposts. The wards he'd put on the building hummed in recognition before allowing him entrance. He reformed in the infirmary where his last surviving cousin turned to greet him only to stop short at the sight of the dying woman._

" _Perse, please," he begged, his green eyes glistening._

 _Persephone Mitchell hurried to Bianca's side, raising her hands over the wound. Agonizing minutes ticked by before the golden glow finally erupted, and the wound slowly healed. As Bianca drifted into a much needed sleep, the younger witchlighter turned to face her big cousin. "How did Wyatt's pet end up like this?"_

" _Don't call her that," Perry warned darkly._

" _I'm sorry, Chris, but she was his personal assassin for years, and no matter how many sweet nothings you whisper to one another, she's still got evil running through her veins. I wouldn't be my mother's daughter if I didn't warn you to be careful. We all know how things worked out when Aunt Phoebe fell for a demon."_

" _She's not a demon. She's a witch, and I'm done having this conversation with you."_

" _Chris, you're the only family I have left. You're already risking so much pretending to be Wyatt's right hand while helping this resistance. I'm worried she's still playing you, or she'll turn back and betray you. Just be careful with your heart."_

 _Perry huffed. "Yeah, well, it's a little too late for that. I'm going to ask her to marry me, Perse. I love her, and I trust her with my life. I'd like to have your blessing. Please?"_

 _Persephone looked just like her mother as a slow smile slid across her face. "Yeah, okay. I love you. If she makes you happy, and you trust her . . . I trust you."_

 _Two weeks later . . ._

 _The park. Their spot. The place they'd first been together. A place they loved and found hope in. Straddling the bench, Chris smiled at Bianca who was sitting next to him. He'd prepared a speech. Lots of things he wanted to tell her about why he loved her, and how he wanted to make her happy, but he found he couldn't say it. He couldn't promise her a thing. Not with the world around them crumbling and the only chance at saving it likely a suicide mission. So, he stuck with a simple, "Will you marry me?"_

 _Bianca looked stunned, not something which happened often. "You're asking me now?"_

 _He grinned, pleased at having her off guard. "Mm-hm."_

" _Here?" she grinned, thinking of the first wild time they'd been together. Back before Wyatt had demolished most of this park and everything else._

" _This is still our spot, Bianca," he replied softly. "No matter what he's done to it." He took her hands, staring deeply into her eyes. "Marry me."_

 _She took a breath, considering, then smiled. "On one condition. You come back to me safely."_

 _Perry let a cocky smirk form. "Have I ever let you down before?"_

 _Bianca fought not to roll her eyes but smiled and sealed their engagement with a kiss._

 _The memories flash more quickly, blurring together._

 _Sneaking into the manor. Making love in the basement. Summoning the book and creating the portal to the past. Demons attacking her. He's terrified of leaving her. If Wyatt finds out she betrayed him . . . She yells at him to go. He obeys, stepping into the portal to try to save their future. He has to if he wants to marry her, and he desperately wants to marry that woman._

 _Bianca in the back room of P3. Worry, excitement, joy, and anxiety flood him. Why was she there? Had something gone wrong? Then she kissed him, and he didn't care. God, he missed her. Then pain. Horrible pain ripping through his chest, and when he looks down her hand is deep inside him, ripping away his powers._

 _Their spot. He nearly collapses in agony when his orbs coalesce. She was waiting for him. She warns him orbing can kill him, and he wonders if that's what she wants. His words hurt her. He sees_ his _Bianca flash on this assassin's face for a second. She says she wants to bring him back, and they were naive to think they could change anything. Wyatt turned her back. Somehow, his brother had broken her. Wyatt apparently promised her he wouldn't kill him. Perry didn't believe that for a second._

 _He wakes up angry. Betrayed. Powerless. Bianca thinks she just saved his life. She doesn't understand she's taking him to die. She wants to believe Wyatt will keep his word. She's so damn unfeeling about it all. Like the assassin who'd first been his guard and trainer. He was furious and frustrated and his heart was breaking more each moment. He wants to hurt her, so he tosses the engagement ring on table telling her there is nothing left for him in the future. He finally see's_ his _Bianca then - just as hurt as he felt. Good._

 _Wyatt was telekinetically strangling him as he dangled six feet up in the air. He was pretty sure this was how he was going to die. Then, Bianca attacked Wyatt, telling him to hurry with whatever he wanted to do. He tries to run to the floorboard, praying the sisters got the spell done - that they understood his message. A spell is there. He starts reading only to see Wyatt kick Bianca, and she falls on a broken table leg - impaled just like before. After sending his brother flying he runs to her side, holding her, fighting tears._

 _She tries to joke, "Haven't we been here before?"_

" _Maybe we will be again."_

Again. Maybe they will be again. Bianca is alive. She's alive and standing only a few feet away. She had said his name. She knew who he was . . . was it possible? Did she remember? Despite his recent drink, Perry's mouth was suddenly bone dry, throat thick. "Do you . . ." he struggled to get the words out, too afraid to hope, ". . .remember me?"

Bianca moved purposefully toward him. She paused just inches away, her brown eyes slowly raking over him. She teased the collar of his shirt with a finger. When he took in a shaky breath, she looked up at him through her dark black lashes giving him a flirty half-smile that always made his blood run hotter. She slipped a hand to the back of his head and gently, achingly slowly brought his head down, but instead of bringing her lips up to his, she moved to whisper breathily in his ear, "How could I ever forget the man who got me killed?"

The words had the same effect as an ice pick to his chest. His heart froze painfully, his veins spreading the icy cold through his body quickly. His stomach twisted in agony, and he could feel the sting at the back of his eyes as she pulled away from him, and he saw her face twisted in heated hatred. At him. Oh, God, Bianca didn't just not want him anymore - she _hated_ him. He had to fix this. Had to explain, but his throat felt closed off and everything just _hurt_. At last he managed weakly, "Bianca, please. I didn't mean for you to get hurt. I love you."

"Oh, please," Bianca almost snarled back, "you tell that to every pretty face." She shot a sidelong look to Casey. "You want him? You can have him."

Casey's eyes went wide, realizing Bianca wasn't just guessing. She felt sick. Then she saw the look on Perry's face, and her own feelings became irrelevant. He looked crushed. She'd never seen him look so open and vulnerable. She had to fight the urge to take him into her arms to comfort him. Then, she got angry. " _El burro sabe mas que tu._ He loves you. Love of a lifetime, die for you, soulmates through time, loves you. _Idiota_."

" _Puta_ ," Bianca shot back.

Casey moved to strike her, but Perry was faster, catching her around the waist. He whispered in her ear, "If you're pregnant, I really can't handle something happening to you. Please. She could kill you."

The tiny woman yanked herself free but made no move to continue her aggression, fuming silently.

Bianca turned to leave, but Perry grabbed her arm trying to stop her. He should have known better, but he'd just reacted. Which is why he wound up with his arm getting jerked painfully upward as the Phoenix ducked underneath it and behind him, ramming him into the bar and pinning him there.

"You don't touch me," she hissed in his face. "Never again. I don't love you anymore. In fact, I hate you, and I plan on making your life as miserable as possible for what you've done to me."

At the commotion, Wyatt, Chris and Molly had run over to see what was going on and possibly help. At the sight of who had his sibling pinned to the bar, Wyatt's blue eyes went wide as his mouth fell open in shock. He couldn't stop himself from uttering, "Bianca?"

The Phoenix released Perry, shoving him away from her toward his sibling. She gave a twisted smile to Wyatt. "Why, hello again."

Perry looked over in surprise at his older brother. "You know her?"

"Uh, well, sorta, I mean not really, but . . ." Wyatt started to fidget, not sure how to explain.

Bianca strode up to Wyatt eyeing him up and down in an obvious manner. She edged a look to Casey stating mockingly, "Well, you know the saying: When the cat's away . . ." Then, she pulled Wyatt down into a deep kiss, making quite the show of it.

Molly's eyes doubled in size, and she turned a worried glance to Casey. The woman looked like she'd been physically slapped, but made no move to stop it. Horrified and frozen in place, Casey grew sickly pale. Molly realized instantly Casey wasn't seeing Wyatt and Bianca. She was seeing him with Valerie, the woman he'd cheated on her with back in high school thanks to a demon's potion.

Chris' eyebrows went up, completely floored. He noticed his best friend looked ready to vomit, and Perry's face had gone stone cold, his green eyes dark and awfully close to misting. Who was this woman, and why the hell was she kissing Wyatt?

When Wyatt finally managed to pull away, he looked the picture of shocked and horrified. He immediately turned to Perry to find the younger man wouldn't look at him. He opened his mouth to defend himself to his brother, but he noticed Molly's hazel eyes gesturing to his left, and he turned to find Casey hugging herself, a faraway, pained look on her face. It was the same look she'd had when she'd walked in on him with Valerie. He felt sick.

Bianca moved to take a teasingly close position next to Perry. "Just so you know, you really are inferior to your brother in _every_ way." She shot a look to his manhood before giving him a cruel smirk and sashaying away, disappearing into the crowds.

Perry didn't think there were enough pieces left of his heart to break, but he'd been wrong. She'd just dug her heel into the shards and ground them into dust. He was having a hard time swallowing. Well, swallowing, breathing, staying upright and just about everything else at the moment. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt moisture on his lashes.

An old song started playing, and Perry couldn't help but realize how appropriate it was for how he was feeling. Amazing how music always seems to capture the moments of our lives just perfectly.

 _I thought that I've been hurt before, but no one's ever left me quite this sore. Your words cut deeper than a knife. Now, I need someone to breathe me back to life._

 _Got a feeling that I'm going under, but I know that I'll make it out alive. If I quit calling you my lover. Move on._

 _You watch me bleed until I can't breathe. I'm shaking falling onto my knees, and now that I'm without your kisses, I'll be needing stitches. I'm tripping over myself. I'm aching, begging you to come help, and now that I'm without your kisses, I'll be needing stitches._

 _Needle and the thread gotta get you out of my head. Needle and the thread gonna wind up dead. Needle and the thread gotta get you out of my head. Needle and the thread gonna wind up dead._

Bianca really would be the death of him.

TBC . . .


	20. She Drives Me Crazy

Thank you sooo much to sise87 for your review. My muse had gone on a vacation until I got that, so she says thanks for bringing her back!

Another steamy scene in this one if that bothers anyone skip that part when you get to it. It'll be fairly obvious when it starts.

Chapter 20

Chris Halliwell didn't like being out of the know. It made him feel out of control, and one thing he really hated was feeling powerless. Especially when it came to protecting the people he cared about. Right now, he had no idea what was happening, but it felt like a metaphorical bomb had just gone off, and all he could do was stare in shocked rage as some strange woman sent his family into emotional turmoil.

Wyatt looked like someone had just sucker punched him. He couldn't seem to form full sentences, stuttering hopelessly first to Casey and then to Perry. His sky blue eyes were full of anxiety, his face stricken as he kept turning his head back and forth between the two people he felt he'd hurt. Even though he'd been a hapless tool in that woman's vendetta.

Lucky's mom looked pissed. Not at Wyatt. She kept trying to reassure her boyfriend everything was fine, and she knew Bianca just wanted to hurt Perry. She swore she believed Wyatt when he said he never touched another woman. Still, Chris could tell it'd brought up some traumatic issues for his friend. Behind her coffee brown eyes an old pain was flashing, but Chris knew she didn't blame Wyatt. She loved Wyatt. Her anger was wholly directed at the woman who'd kissed him. It was a good thing she didn't have all the same powers as his mom, or things would likely be exploding.

The worst off by far was Perry. Chris could practically see the guy's heart on the floor. He didn't know who Bianca was to him, but it was clear she'd been important. It was strange seeing his cocky twin look so pained. In his mind, he'd likened Perry to a war vet, brave and calculating and tough. He didn't seem any of those things right now. In fact, the last time Chris had seen someone look so utterly broken it had been in the mirror right after Molly had died. Considering they were twins, he now knew how he must have looked to Casey that night in the bar. No wonder she hadn't been able to say no.

Chris turned to Molly who was chewing on the inside of her mouth looking like she felt everything the other three were going through. Even though she wasn't an empath, she'd always been acutely affected by the emotions of others. Simply because she cared so much and so deeply. It was what made her such an amazing whitelighter. Certainly his better half. She was gentle and loving and sympathetic when her loved ones were hurting. Chris? Chris just got angry.

"Would someone, please, tell me what the hell is going on?" Chris demanded, snapping everyone out of their own heads and quiet conversations. He gestured vaguely to where Bianca had wandered off. "Just who was that?"

Molly answered, "Perry's fiancee." Off said man's wince, she corrected, "Err, ex-fiancee?"

Chris couldn't help it as his eyebrows went up, and he said to Perry, "You were engaged to _that_?"

Casey and Molly both shot him dirty looks.

"Because she's really, uh . . ." Chris stuttered realizing how his declaration had sounded to the two women in his life, ". . .gross? And evil. Gross and evil I was gonna say." When his former lover and his fiancee both continued to glare at him, he pointed to Perry. "He was the one who got engaged to her. _I_ didn't." He shrunk a little under their heated stares. "You are both way prettier than her, and I love you?"

"Uh huh," Molly said, looking less than pleased.

Casey rolled her eyes before turning them to fix worriedly on Perry. She said nothing, just locked gazes with him, offering a thin, sad smile. Chris noticed Perry return her look with one of regret and sorrow. They stayed staring at one another for a minute, and something in the way the two were silently communicating made his stomach twist. He didn't know why, but he knew his gut was never wrong either.

"Perry, I, and it, I . . ." Wyatt still couldn't seem to form sentences.

Perry turned a cold look to his older brother. "Don't. Just don't, okay? I know you didn't sleep with her. She wanted to hurt me, and you were an easy way to do that. So just stop with the sad, please-don't-hate-me eyes because I can't deal with your insecurities right now."

"Hey," Chris said sharply. "Not cool. He just cares about you, and it's pretty obvious you're hurting."

"I'm fine," Perry replied levelly. "I just need to be alone."

As Perry turned to leave, Wyatt reached to grab his arm. It was instinctual. Something he would have done with Chris had his other brother tried to run from his feelings or push him out. Only this wasn't Chris, and the man reacted by grabbing Wyatt's wrist, twisting it painfully to release his hold.

Familiar green eyes flashed with a foreign darkness as Perry harshly informed him, "Don't ever grab me. Not ever. We clear?"

The Twice Blessed nodded, his mouth parted in hurt and shock. It wasn't hatred in his baby brother's eyes, but it was pretty close. Wyatt understood Perry wasn't really seeing him in this moment. He was seeing _his_ Wyatt. Based on what little Perry had told him, the other Wyatt had been controlling to the extreme. It was likely he'd used his power to overwhelm Perry often. Grabbing him, trying to force him to stay, had been a critical error.

Perry's eyes cleared, and he released Wyatt's wrist. He ran a hand tiredly over his face. "Damn it. I'm sorry." His voice cracked as he begged, "Just let me go. Please. Don't follow me."

"Of course," Wyatt replied sadly. He hesitated to ask, "Perry, you'll come back, right? Eventually?"

"Yeah," he said letting out a breath. "I'll orb back to the apartment sometime. I promise."

Before anyone could say another word, Perry slipped into the crowd, disappearing with every bit as much skill as Bianca had shown earlier. Chris supposed it shouldn't surprise him. If those two were engaged before, she'd probably taught him a number of skills.

The thought made him wonder how it had all gone so wrong. They had found love in impossible circumstances from what Chris knew of the other timeline. How could she purposefully hurt Perry as if he had meant nothing to her? She'd brought everyone else down with him too. The other three were all silent and sad and awkward. Not Chris' style, so, trying to lighten the mood, he said, "Seems I totally dodged a bullet in the fiancee department."

Molly smiled, shaking her head and drawing his name out in admonishment.

Chris winked at her, making her laugh. He then turned a more serious eye to his brother. "Hey. You okay?"

"Just when I think I'm making progress with him, something happens to ruin it," Wyatt answered dejectedly. "Maybe he's always going to hate me."

The younger man put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "He doesn't hate you. Believe me, I would be able to tell. He's just a little angsty. Been through way too much, and it seems the hits just keep on coming for the guy. Give him time. Trust me, you're a great big brother, Wyatt. He'll come to you when he's ready."

Wyatt smiled, his eyes almost misting at the rare compliment from his sibling. "Thanks, Chris. I really needed to hear that."

Giving Wyatt's shoulder a firm squeeze, Chris shot Casey a look. The woman hadn't stopped staring at the spot where Perry had been standing. He wasn't sure if the sorrow in her eyes was from guilt at having been another woman to have broken Perry's heart recently or if there was more to it. When he caught her bite her lip and look to the floor, the knot in his stomach returned. He ventured, "Case?"

His friend looked up and forced a quick, fake smile at him, and Chris flashed back to when they were teenagers, seeing her as she was at seventeen instead of twenty-two. The same damaged, confused girl who'd been desperate for something to make the pain stop even just for a moment. Knowing her better than anyone, probably even Wyatt, Chris couldn't help but wonder what the hell she'd gotten herself into this time.

"Well, I don't know about everyone else, but I think I'm ready to go home," Molly announced. She smiled warmly at her fiancee. "Besides, we have Lucky in the morning, and your son thinks getting up at six o'clock in the morning is fun."

Forcing his concerned gaze away from Casey, Chris replied glibly, "Yeah, pretty sure kids are adorable so parents don't kill them when they do that. One big smile in the morning, and all is forgiven."

"What about Perry?" Wyatt asked. "Shouldn't someone go after him? Make sure he doesn't get into trouble?"

"We may not be the same person," Chris answered, "but we're close enough, so take my word for it, he'll want to be alone. Pushing will just get you the same result it would with me. Probably worse."

"Okay, then what about Bianca? What she did made no sense," Wyatt argued. "She's supposed to be good. Kip read her. Why'd she do this?"

Chris frowned. "Kip's in town?" He waved off his own question. "Nevermind. Listen, it's late. Damage has already been done. Let's get some sleep and reconvene to discuss the Bianca situation in the morning. I have a feeling I'm missing a lot of the details, but I'm too tired to think straight at the moment. I'll come talk to you about it at Magic School tomorrow when I drop off Lucky, okay?"

Wyatt's shoulders sagged in disappointment, but he mumbled agreement.

Chris moved to give Casey a hug goodbye taking the opportunity to say quietly in her ear, "I'm worried about you." He pulled back, holding her shoulders and giving her a solemn look. "We've got a lot to talk about. Come a bit early to the restaurant tomorrow, okay?"

"Sure."

Molly held her hand out, and Chris turned to take it, pulling his fiancee tight against him with a smile. "Shall we?"

"We shall."

Knowing Chris far too well, Casey flicked her hands out, freezing the entire club just before her best friend kissed his fiancee and disappeared in a swirl of lights. She called out to the disappearing orbs, "Personal gain, _Perezoso_!"

Wyatt chuckled at her, shaking his head. "You know he'll never stop doing that."

"Does exposure mean nothing to him?" she muttered. She gestured with one hand, the room returning to the loud dance party it had been a moment earlier. She let out a frustrated breath plopping down on one of the stools and leaning her face on one hand.

Wyatt moved to stand behind her, putting his hands on her shoulders and lightly kissing her neck. When she tensed, he frowned. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Sorry, just worried."

"About Perry?"

She shrugged. "He doesn't have anyone. We were friends in the past, but now, everything is so complicated, and he won't talk to me."

"Because of me?" Wyatt guessed.

All the color drained from her face. Panic flittered in her eyes, and she opened her mouth to say something but closed it, changing her mind.

"It's okay," Wyatt said, misinterpreting her shock. "His best friend is dating his once evil brother. He told me I avoided you in his timeline, so he had no idea I felt that way about you. Must be quite the adjustment for him to see us together."

The petite woman let out a breath, forcing a smile. "Right. That's . . . yeah, that's it."

The Twice Blessed shifted nervously, his eyes not quite meeting hers. "So, did you, um, still want to come over tonight? Since Mom and Dad have Lucky tonight, and Chris has morning detail, I thought we could . . . I mean, I understand completely if you don't want to since you've been through a lot, and aren't feeling one hundred percent." He wrinkled his nose at how he was sounding. "I don't mean we have to do anything. It's not about that. I just thought you could spend the night. Just because I missed you. Not for anything else. Unless you want to and feel up for that, which of course, I would love, but no pressure either."

"You're babbling," she told him, putting her hand to his face to get his attention. When he took in a contented breath, leaning into her touch, she smiled. "Your apartment sounds good. I've missed you too."

Wyatt took her hand and led her through the crowd back to the office. After he shut the door behind them, he put his hands on her waist and orbed them away to his apartment. They reformed in his bedroom, and he drunk in the sight of her. Her hair was lightly curled, pulled up in a simple ponytail with the strands at front forming ringlets framing her face. The green halter dress was clinging to her curves in a way that made his head feel foggy in the best way. He breathed out, "You are so beautiful."

The woman blushed deeply, nervously pushing a white strand of hair behind her ear.

"You never answered my question back at the club," Wyatt pointed out, his eyes sliding to her abdomen.

Her brown eyes fell to the floor, shining with emotion.

The Twice Blessed felt his heart pause painfully. "You're upset you're pregnant? Is that why you've been so quiet?" His hands moved from her waist, and he took a step back at the same time his voice dropped to painfully question, "You don't want to have a baby with me?"

Casey's eyes darted back up to his, her hands flying up to cup his face. "Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, that is not it. Not at all. I just . . . I don't think I'm pregnant with your baby." She quickly amended, "I mean to say, I think I'm just run down. Things were stressful in the past, and I wasn't eating or sleeping right. I caught a cold. That's why I fainted."

"Oh," he replied, the disappointment tangible. He moved past her, sitting on the edge of the bed, his hands clasped in his lap.

"Wyatt?"

He let out a breath. "I've been keeping something from you for a long time."

Casey sucked in an anxious breath, wondering where he was going with this.

"Nothing terrible," he assured her, noting the worried look she was wearing. "It has to do with the first time we slept together. Before we were a couple. The night I drove you home from school after Sam had attacked you."

The petite woman instinctively rubbed her wrist as though she could still feel the vicious bruises her first love had given her that day.

"I've always regretted taking advantage of you that night," he said sadly. As she tried to cut in to defend him, he cut her off, "I know. I know. You think you used me. We both made a mistake. It's just . . . I always wondered why that hadn't been the night, you know? Why wasn't Lucky mine instead of Chris'?"

Casey had no words. She could tell him why. Only it would destroy him, and she couldn't stand the idea of him in so much pain. So, she stayed silent.

"Everyone assumed Lucky was going to be mine when Phoebe had the premonition of you with a baby," Wyatt continued. "You were so relieved when you took that first pregnancy test, and it was negative, but I wasn't."

"I was relieved because I thought I was out of the woods," Casey said softly. "I thought maybe Phoebe's premonition wasn't going to happen as soon as she thought. I didn't want to be a teenage mother, Wyatt. It had nothing to do with you. As you recall, Chris and I were both pretty freaked out when we found out I was pregnant. We were zombies for weeks. Terrified."

Wyatt nodded. "I remember, and I understand." He lifted his gaze to lock on her brown. "I'm not telling you this to make you feel bad about the past, Casey. I love Lucky. I wouldn't ever wish him away or wish he were different. It's just . . . I have known I wanted to have a child with you since I was nineteen years old."

His girlfriend swallowed thickly, not sure what to say.

"After everything your parents went through, I understand marriage is off the table, and I'm fine with that, but I need to know do you think you might want a family with me?" He added quickly, "I don't necessarily mean right now. You don't even need to tell me right now. Just . . . do you even think about it?"

Casey moved to sit next to him on the bed. Her hand clasped his. "I do."

"And?"

The young woman leaned her head on his shoulder, rubbing her thumb over the back of his hand. She tried to keep the sorrow out of her voice as she said, "I'd always pictured our son would have your eyes."

"Daughter," Wyatt corrected. "I think we'd have a girl."

"Oh?"

"I think it'd be easier since I don't want Lucky to be jealous of his sibling slash cousin." Wyatt wrinkled his nose. "Poor kid. We really are going to scar him, you know."

Casey lifted her head and waved him off with a playful smile. "Yeah, but don't worry, Chris and I started a savings account to pay for his shrink before he was even born."

Wyatt laughed then. He'd missed her off-beat humor horribly while she'd been gone. He'd missed everything about her. He put a hand up to her face. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Their eyes locked, their smiles slowly fading as the humor faded into a more intense feeling. Wyatt slipped a hand to the back of her neck, gently pulling her toward him. He kissed firmly, deeply with all the pent up love and passion and want he'd been holding onto while she'd been gone. Her lips were warm and soft and inviting. He smiled through the kiss at the hint of watermelon lip balm. God he'd missed that taste.

Suddenly Casey pulled away, jumping up off the bed. Her fingers went up to touch her lips, her eyes squeezing shut as though pained.

"Casey, what's wrong?" Wyatt asked. When she didn't respond, he rose to his feet, moving to grab her shoulders. "Casey? Are you okay? Do you not want to do this?"

Her eyes snapped open, and her tiny hands gripped his arms tightly pulling him down to kiss him hard, almost desperately. She kicked off her heels, which banged into the wall. Without warning, she hopped up into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

Wyatt was so surprised by the move he nearly lost his balance as he caught her. Not that it stopped him from thoroughly enjoying it and returning her attentions with just as much passion. He tossed her lightly onto the bed positioning himself above her as he teased the spot on her throat he knew drove her mad, untying the strap around her neck at the same time.

Casey frantically undid his button down shirt, nearly ripping it off while nibbling on his ear and then moving back to his mouth, sucking on his bottom lip and making him moan. He hadn't even realized his shirt had hit the floor until her lips were on his chest, her fingers gliding over his bare back.

Slipping her dress down while caressing her soft, warm skin, Wyatt kissed the newly exposed flesh, eliciting a moan. Turned on by her pleasure, he tugged her dress off completely and felt almost pained by the need for her. This woman was his world, and he wanted to show her that fact tonight. When, with uncharacteristic frenzy, she removed his belt with one hand, sliding it out and easily undoing the button of his pants, kissing every bit of him she could find, he knew Casey felt the same way.

Their love making was not normally this passionate. For some reason, he'd always held back a bit with her, afraid of hurting her. Wyatt was normally gentle and slow and reserved, but tonight, he was none of those things. The frenzy with which Casey kissed, gripped and stroked him had woken up a part of him he hadn't let loose in a long time. They were a little rough and crazed like they were dying of thirst and only the feel and taste of the other could quench it.

When they were both fully spent wrapped only in each others embrace, Wyatt could honestly say it was the best experience of his life. Of course, he had no idea it had been orchestrated entirely out of guilt and sadness and a desperate desire to burn away the feel of another man's touches.

000

Perry was up on Golden Gate Bridge, replaying the events of the evening over and over in his head on a torturous loop. Casey might be pregnant with his child. Bianca hated him. Wyatt was desperate for his approval. Wyatt wanted to be a father too. He'd made that pretty obvious. The baby wouldn't be his though. If there was a baby. Casey had never answered him. Then Bianca had shown up, and . . . He closed his eyes letting out a deep breath. Why couldn't his life be simple just for a little while?

 _You weren't very nice to your poor big brother, Wyatt_ , a voice spoke into his ear. _All he wants is to be close to you, and you just always have to push him away._

The young Elder bit the inside of his mouth. He'd been too hard on Wyatt. Taken his frustrations out on him. The poor guy probably thought he hated him. He didn't. He really never had. It was just complicated. Like everything else in his life.

Bianca. What the hell had happened to make her hate him so much? It couldn't have been how she died as she claimed. They'd said tearful goodbyes, and he'd expressed how much he loved her, and she seemed to still reciprocate even in her last moments. It seemed she knew something about his relationship with Casey. Maybe that was why she hated him so much? She felt he moved on too soon? She'd been dead a year at that point. He had no idea if she'd be alive, or if he'd even remember her or vice versa when he got back to the changed future. Speaking of which, how did she remember?

 _That's not what's important right now. You should really go apologize to Wyatt. Try to make things an intsy little bit better between the two of you._

Watching the traffic blur below him, Perry knew the mature thing to do was to seek out his older brother and talk it out. As awkward and terrible as it may be. With a potential child in the mix, keeping what happened between he and Casey a secret wasn't an option any more, and if she was pregnant, Casey didn't need the guilt and stress lying was causing her. As for Bianca, he'd have to figure that out later. There was no point in trying to fix his relationship with Bianca until he knew for sure what was going on with Casey.

Orbing from the bridge, he headed straight to Wyatt's apartment. He coalesced in the living room, surprised not to see his brother sitting on the sofa waiting for him. Maybe he had sensed wrong, and his brother was still at the club?

Which was when he heard his brother's voice coming from the bedroom, muffled but definitely him. He frowned staring at the door for a moment before a woman's all too familiar gasp and moan made his heart drop into his stomach. Wyatt and Casey were having sex. Loud, passionate sex. Perfect.

"Of course they would be," Perry muttered bitterly.

For some reason, he didn't leave. Some perverse curiosity kept him in the apartment. He did move to the cupboards opening and shutting them until he found the liquor. He grabbed a bottle of what appeared to be fairly expensive scotch and grinned, opening it and starting to drink straight from the bottle. He jumped up on the counter, taking a long swig as he heard his brother call out his girlfriend's name. He noticed with a bit of smug satisfaction she didn't seem to be agreeing with Wyatt as much as she had with him. At least he was better than Wyatt at something.

Perry glanced at the clock hanging over the sink. They had to be done soon. Hearing what was, hopefully, the finale Perry bit the inside of his mouth hard enough to draw blood as he finally heard Casey scream his sibling's name. It shouldn't have bothered him as much as it did. Wyatt and Casey were together. They loved each other. He'd been the one to tell her to act like everything was normal. This really should've been expected. They'd been apart for a long time. If they didn't have sex, Wyatt probably would know something was wrong, and neither of them wanted that.

Still, hearing his brother making her moan and cry out in pleasure made his stomach twist and heart spasm. Perry couldn't stop thinking about how _he'd_ made her make those sounds a few days ago. Could picture the look on her face, imagine the feel of her beneath him so clearly. It felt so _right_ when they'd been together. Only it wasn't right. She wasn't his to have.

 _Why not? Why does Wyatt al-ways get everything? Why can't you have happiness just once? Bianca hates you. He killed her, but she blames you. She loathes the very sight of you. Casey loves you, but you spurned her, forced her back into Wyatt's arms. May-be, just, may-be you should do what's best for you for once. Take her from him just as he took Bianca from you._

Perry blinked, not sure where those thoughts had come from. Though, some dark, long suffering jealousy stirred in him at the words. He had given up everything for his brother - even his own life. Why? Just because he was Twice Blessed? Wasn't Perry important too? Deserving of happiness?

Deep, loud snoring had started. Apparently Wyatt had passed out after they'd finished. He glanced at the clock again and frowned. He'd just completely spaced out the last fifteen minutes. Odd. He normally was acutely aware of his surroundings at all times.

The door slowly creaked open, Casey sneaking out and closing it quietly behind her. She was only wearing Wyatt's dress shirt, which was big enough on her it reached her knees like a dress. When she turned to find Perry perched up on the counter staring at her she jumped, startled.

Perry cocked his head to the side as he noticed the tear trails on her face. "Huh. So I'm not the only one who makes you cry after sex."

Casey dried her face with the palms of her hands, looking mortified. She buttoned the dress shirt up all the way, shifting nervously and flushing. "How long have you been there?"

Taking another swig from the bottle he held up a finger. When he'd swallowed he answered, "I think it was somewhere around ' _Ay, Dios Mio. Dios Mio. Más por fa'_." He took another drink. "Good times."

The young woman's face paled, her mouth falling open as embarrassed horror flooded her features. She moved toward him, stumbling over her words. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea you were here, and we didn't plan, I didn't even want to but then . . . I am so sorry."

"Why are you sorry?"

She blinked, thrown by the question. "That you had to hear that."

"In case you didn't notice," Perry slurred slightly, "my heart got ripped out of my chest back at P3 and is currently being danced on by a bunch of drunks. I'm a little numb at the moment, so you having sex with Wyatt . . . not really high on my radar of shit to care about."

Casey bit her lip, nodding. After a moment she hesitantly offered, "I'm sorry about Bianca."

"I'm sure you are," he drawled. "Would've been a nice way to get you off the hook, right? I get Bianca, you keep Wyatt, Chris and Molly get married. Everybody lives happily ever after. You could ditch some of the guilt you're carrying because everything worked out in the end. Forget the fact you really hurt me. Cheated on Wyatt. Kinda betrayed Chris and Molly too since you didn't know there were two of us. Bet you're real disappointed Bianca hates my ever lovin' guts. Ruins your plans but good."

The young woman winced before her brown eyes flashed in anger. "That's not fair. You know Barbas had a hand in what happened. Besides, I _do_ feel horrible about how Bianca treated you. No matter what, I still love you. We were friends long before that night. I want you to be happy."

"Sorry," Perry said with a sigh. "I can be a mean drunk."

"You can be mean sober."

To her surprise, he chuckled. "True."

Perry patted the spot on the counter next to him. When she quirked a brow in question, he said, "We were friends. Best friends once. After the day I've had, I could use that again. Please?"

The woman looked hesitant, her eyes darting back to the bedroom door.

"I don't think he'll be waking up anytime soon," Perry commented. "Besides, we're just going to be talking. Even if he does stumble out here, he won't suspect anything out of the ordinary. So . . ." He patted the spot on the counter again.

Casey let out a deep breath but finally crossed the difference between them, lightly hopping up on the counter next to him. She swung her legs nervously, not sure what to expect. She pushed her hair back behind her ear, biting her lip.

"You don't need to be nervous," Perry said, taking another drink. When he finished, he grinned at her, "I only bit you the once, and as I recall, you liked it."

She gave him a heated glare. "Not funny. Not remotely funny."

"Sorry." He cocked his head to the side, studying her face. "Your lack of humor have something to do with what happened tonight? I assume crying after sex isn't a normal quirk of yours. With me, you regretted it. Why are you crying tonight?"

"Why do you think?" she said, bitterly, staring at the floor. "He was making passionate love to me, and I . . . I felt horrible. Guilty and dirty. The sweeter he was the more I felt like I was going to be sick. I thought maybe if I just tried harder I could erase you."

Perry deadpanned, "Ouch."

Casey looked sheepish. " _Siento_. I just meant I didn't want to keep flashing to your hands or lips or . . . When I'm with Wyatt, I want to be with him. Not thinking about you."

 _Why is it you think that she juuuust can't get you out of her head? Maybe you aren't the only one wishing things were different._

Perry took a very long drink.

"How are you doing with all of this?" Casey asked softly. "It has to be pretty overwhelming."

Perry shrugged. "Everything with Wyatt is harder than I thought. He's trying way too hard, and he cares so much about what I think of him. It's smothering. He's nice, which is great, but sometimes I just wish there was a crack in the armor, you know? Something I could relate to aside from having the exact same taste in women apparently."

"I used to feel that way," Casey admitted. When Perry grinned and raised his eyebrows at her, she lightly smacked his arm. "Not the part about women. The other bit." When he'd stopped chuckling, she explained, "Growing up, I didn't see Wyatt. I saw his titles and his power. It felt like trying to be close to him was like trying to touch the sun. It wasn't until I broke his heart I realized he had one. That he is just a guy."

"Broke his heart?"

Casey nodded, looking ashamed. "I knew he had feelings for me when we were young. I, uh, I just didn't see him that way at that point. When Chris and I started fooling around, he was crushed. Stopped talking to me, would barely look at me. I thought he hated me."

"I find Chris really annoying." Perry suddenly blurted. He had a strong urge to change the subject. "Firstly, I don't like seeing my own face looking back at me. It's eerie. Especially when I'm pretty sure he can tell exactly what I'm thinking, which I don't like. Secondly, he's so different from me in ways that, for whatever reason, bug me. He's lighthearted and cocky and freakishly happy. Everything just always seems to work out for him, doesn't it?"

Casey shrugged. "He's had his low points. Normally he's not quite so chipper. I think it's the engagement. Just excited to marry Molly."

"I like Molly," Perry admitted. "She's one of those rare people that's just genuinely kind. No act. No fake niceties. Just _real_."

The latina gave him a sidelong glance. "Getting a crush on your future sister-in-law?"

The alcohol in his system made him reply unabashedly, "No, I only have feelings for one of my brother's girls, and she's sitting next to me."

"Perry . . ."

He turned toward her, all serious now. "I have to know, Case . . . are you pregnant?"

"I don't know." She leaned her head back against the cabinet. "I told Wyatt I wasn't, but I honestly don't know. I won't know for another week or so."

Perry nodded. After a long pause, he asked frankly, "Did you sleep with him tonight so you could pass it off as his?"

Her head whipped around so fast, her eyes burning so hotly he nearly flinched. "No. I slept with him because I love him, and he missed me, and I was hoping maybe it would make me feel normal. Get you out of my head."

 _Now's your big chance. You wanna hurt Wyatt. Take her from him._

"Maybe there's a reason you can't stop thinking about it," Perry commented huskily. His hand moved to rest on her thigh. His eyes slowly raked over her before locking on hers. "Everything happens for a reason. You cheated on Wyatt because you were afraid to lose me. Bianca hates me and wants nothing to do with me. And now, you might be carrying my child. It's like the universe is pushing us together."

Casey shook her head, removing his hand from her person. "Perry, you've been drinking, and you're not thinking clearly. I love Wyatt. I want to be with him, and I don't know what's going on with Bianca, but I know how much you love her. You can't just give up. Track her down. Make her talk to you. _Really_ talk. Not just the angry venom she was spitting tonight. Find out the truth."

"We could be family," Perry said, completely ignoring her. "You and me and Lucky and the new baby."

 _Just like you used to dream about,_ a voice hissed into Casey's ear. She frowned feeling suddenly ill at ease. She was so distracted she hadn't noticed Perry had put his hand on her knee. _The damage has already been done. What's the harm now?_

Perry moved his hand up her thigh, capturing her mouth with his.

Casey immediately slapped him, causing Perry to lose his balance in his drunken state. He fell off the counter sideways hitting the door to the oven with his back before he slid to the ground. The thud and bang echoed loudly through the apartment.

The door to Wyatt's room flew open and a disheveled Twice Blessed Witch came hurrying out, looking panicked and half asleep. "What was that?" he asked, looking around the apartment, clearly thinking a demon had attacked.

"Perry's drunk and fell down," Casey said bluntly. She shot the intoxicated witch a disappointed, angry look before turning to Wyatt. "Why don't you help him to bed, _Corazon_? I'm not feeling well again all the sudden." She kissed Wyatt before slipping by him and disappearing into his bedroom.

Wyatt moved to squat next to Perry. "You okay? That sounded like a nasty fall."

Perry's eyes drifted over to the door Casey had just closed. "I've had worse."

000

Barbas growled in frustration as he flamed into the apartment he and Nomed were using as their base of operations. "Stubborn little witch! I had him! I had him completely under my control, but she barely registered my suggestion. Her love for the Twice Blessed is too strong, just as I predicted."

"Bianca did beautiful work crushing Perry's spirit," Nomed said. "Now, I think it's time to have her focus her attention on the Twice Blessed. Obviously Guinevere didn't believe he'd been unfaithful. As much as I loathe the idea of him touching Bianca, it may be a necessary evil. I've managed to find an associate of Zayel's who is acquiring the potion used against the Twice Blessed before. We'll merely slip it to him again."

Barbas wagged a finger. "Ah, but if he betrays her first, do you think he'll be as upset when he discovers she's had relations with baby brother? It might be seen as a case of turn-about is fair play."

"Perhaps, but I always have a back-up plan. If The Twice Blessed cannot be corrupted or broken, then we will continue to focus on Perry," Nomed replied calmly. "He's been devastated twice over. Based on his reaction tonight he's already on the edge. Perhaps, if we can't turn Wyatt evil . . . little brother will do."

TBC. . .


	21. Wake Me Up

Thank you sooo much to sise87 and Anthony for your reviews! I've been struggling to find time to write this so your reviews make the effort worth it. I also agree with both of you Perry is being dumb, but have no fears - he will get a 'wake up call' from our other favorite neurotic whitelighter in short order :)

Chapter 21

Bianca was perched up on the counter of her apartment drinking a steaming mug of coffee trying to figure out why she couldn't get Perry Halliwell's face out of her head. The look in his eyes . . . she almost believed he'd really loved her. Almost. After what she knew he'd done, it couldn't have been real.

Nomed had her cast a spell to show her Perry's betrayals, and it had shown her everything. How Perry had likely cheated on her with a Valkyrie named, Mist, had definitely done so when he slept with some blonde charge. He'd also kissed another strange blonde woman too. He'd then gotten Bianca killed by the evil version of Wyatt just so he could escape back to the past where he'd quickly hooked up with his ex-girlfriend.

"Good morning, Love," Nomed greeted as he shimmered into the room. He sidled up behind her, nipping at the base of her neck.

It irritated her. Everything about him did. His accent. The way he smelled like sulfur. Last night, Perry had this intoxicating aroma of earthy spice, and as much as she hated him, the smell had a decidedly aphrodisiac quality to it. She vaguely wondered if cologne would help Nomed stop annoying her.

The demon's face split into a smile as he smelled her hair. "I missed you last night. Did you get your revenge?"

"Partly," she answered. "It's not enough. Not nearly."

"I think I have just the answer for that," Nomed crooned into her ear, his hot breath aggravating rather than enticing her. "I think I know how we can turn Merlin evil."

"Perry Halliwell will never turn evil." She frowned, confused by the certainty with which she spoke. Where had that come from? When Nomed arched a brow in question, she shrugged. "If he didn't crack under the pressure of the first timeline, I don't see how he would this time."

"What if he found his true love in bed with his brother?"

A false note. Bianca had noticed a few of those when Nomed spoke. She filed this one away with the others before asking, "I thought you said he didn't really love me?"

Nomed's face fell for a moment before he recovered. "More like a prized possession, I should've said. Besides, you know how he feels about that brother of his."

"He loves Wyatt. He's just insecure about it," Bianca replied. Something twisted in her stomach. Since when was she an expert on Perry Halliwell? She'd met the man for five minutes while she tried to hurt him for all he'd done to her. He was a liar, a cheat and a coward. Those were the facts she knew. The only facts she should care about.

Nomed didn't seem to notice her comment or ponderings. "I've acquired a rare potion. It's a lust draught. I thought we could use it on the Twice Blessed. It's worked on him before."

Bianca sipped her coffee contemplating what to do about Nomed. She didn't entirely trust him. He was a demon after all. Not to mention, the idea he thought she would serve as some sex toy for Wyatt Halliwell pissed her off. Plus, it was a horribly, painfully, incredibly stupid idea.

"So, what do you think?" Nomed asked in what she supposed he thought was a sensuous manner. He brushed her hair from her neck to kiss his way up it.

"I think it's needlessly complicated," the Phoenix replied, pulling away to glare at him in annoyance. "If you have a lust draught use it on the girlfriend, so she cheats on Wyatt again. Stop with the mind games and just get the job done. Besides, wasn't turning the Twice Blessed the goal? He's the magically superior one anyway. Why are you suddenly focused on Perry?"

Nomed's flirtatious smile slipped into a scowl. "Are you trying to protect him?"

Seemed Nomed was jealous. Was he really making strategies based on his sad little feelings? Bianca rolled her eyes. "Hardly. I just think if we want to tip the scales back to our side, the better target is the witch with the most power. An evil Wyatt means we get to rule the world, right?"

"Right," Nomed slowly agreed, though the look on his face was dubious at best. Clearly testing her, he tried to casually ask, "So, you don't mind giving Perry exactly what he wants? His brother's girl?"

"He may get a few moments of pleasure," Bianca mused, "but when his brother finds out, I won't have to lift a finger to destroy that lecherous coward." A sinister smile twisted her lips, "And I know just when we should make our move, and how Wyatt should find out."

"Oh?"

"Everybody loves a wedding."

Nomed broke into a pleased smile, swinging her around on the counter to kiss her soundly. When they parted he told her, "I love how your deviant mind works."

"In the meantime, I think Barbas should be splitting his time between Perry and Wyatt. Keep Perry jealous and insecure and start planting the seeds of doubt in Wyatt's mind about his new brother."

"Yes, yes, absolutely," Nomed agreed. "Also, I think I shall restart my relationship with young Lucas. Barbas told me he saw Perry and Casey in a rather compromising position. Perhaps, I can get the youth to share the tale."

Bianca sipped her coffee nodding. Finally, he'd offered a not completely useless idea. While the adults may not believe the child, it could certainly raise suspicion. Create doubt. If they did believe the child, so much the better.

Nomed was talking again, but The Phoenix was lost in thought as she finished her coffee. Regardless of whether her demonic boyfriend was untrustworthy, regardless of whether she and Perry had once loved one another, she knew the evil in her demanded only one thing: End good magic. It was an all consuming fire inside of her belly. She was born to darkness. It was where she belonged. If Nomed couldn't get the job done, she would.

Bianca would not fail in destroying each and every one of the Halliwells.

000

Perry woke up feeling like he'd been struck with a darklighter arrow. Not one single part of him didn't hurt. He was shaky and nauseated. His head felt like his brain was banging against his skull, trying to burst out. He was pretty sure he was massively hung over. It was the first time in his life he'd experienced the sensation. He'd been too busy with life and death responsibilities to indulge in much drinking before. He had to say he was not loving it. What the hell had he been thinking? Downing scotch like water? Stupid.

He groaned as the rest of the evening came back to him. He'd treated Wyatt like dirt at the club. Then, he'd said some lousy things to Casey before making a pass at her. Oh God. He'd made a pass at her. He groaned again, moving his hand to touch his face where she'd slapped him, finding it still tender. She'd been pissed as hell, and he couldn't blame her. What had come over him? It was like he'd been a different person last night. A wallowing, whiny, selfish, pig. A complete jerk.

"Morning sunshine," his own voice said without a hint of cheer.

Perry opened his eyes, wincing at the sharp pain the light caused. He half-lurched as a strong wave of nausea came over him. Swallowing in an attempt to keep everything in his stomach, he finally managed to get his eyes to open one at a time. "Chris? What the hell are you doing in my room?"

"I got a call about half an hour ago," Chris said. He hadn't uncrossed his arms. His eyes were a cold sage. Perry never realized how intimidating he could look until he saw the expression on his twin's face.

Pushing himself up to his elbows, Perry squeezed his eyes shut as the room spun from the movement. He was definitely not a fan of hangovers. He felt awful. Why did people think getting drunk was fun? Liars the lot of them. A bit distracted, he finally managed to say, "Oh. Wait call? What call? I didn't call you."

"No, Casey did. She's was pretty upset after what happened last night."

Panic set in, but he somehow managed to keep his voice level. "What did she tell you?"

"You made a pass at her, and my girl slapped you silly."

Perry shot him a look. "Don't you mean Wyatt's girl?"

"She's absolutely the love of his life, and Wyatt is hers. No doubt about it," Chris confirmed. "That said, she is my very best friend. My son's mother. Casey is my person, and I'm hers."

The Elder frowned, partly from physical discomfort and partly from confusion. "Your person? What does that even mean?"

"It means if she killed someone, I'm the one she'd call to get rid of the body."

"I see, so in this scenario I'm the dead body, right?"

Chris smiled, but it was neither warm nor friendly. He tapped his finger to his nose twice.

"Listen, Man," Perry started, "I had just found out the love of my life hates me, and I very stupidly decided to drink away the problem, which I haven't actually ever done before, and Casey and I were talking, and I made a mistake. It won't happen again."

"Damn straight it won't," Chris agreed. "I'm fairly certain I don't know everything that happened between you two in the past, but what I've pieced together so far I don't like."

"What exactly do you think you know?"

"For starters, you're in love with Casey, and apparently, she let you kiss her once. Maybe even a bit more, though I seriously hope not. Then, last night she was giving you a look I recognized from when we were teenagers - back when she was hurting and confused and not herself. Whatever happened with you two drug her back to her past in a bad way, and you tried to take advantage of it last night."

Perry glanced down at his hands, his voice quiet as he asked, "Are you going to tell Wyatt?"

"That depends."

"On . . .?"

Chris shoved his hands in his pants pockets. "Is Bianca really the love of your life, or do you think Casey is? Remember, I'm pretty much you, so I'll know if you're lying, and I will be seriously displeased by the attempt."

Perry turned his face away. He wasn't sure how to explain it. Finally he slowly, carefully said, "Casey, the one from my timeline, was my first love. She died when I was fourteen, so how I feel about her . . . it's a lot of dreaming about what could have been. Almost like a fairytale. Bianca?" He winced at the name, his chest tightening painfully as a lump formed in his throat. "What we had was real. It wasn't perfect, but it was everything to me. She was everything to me, and if I could have her back, _my_ Bianca . . . there'd be no contest."

His twin studied him, weighing the answer. After a moment, he let out a breath. "So then let's get her back for you."

"Bianca remembers me, but she hates me, Chris."

"See, I don't buy it," Chris replied, finally taking a seat on the bed next to his twin, dropping the intimidation tactic for now. "Molly was filling me in a bit last night after we got home, and she said the other Elders assigned Bianca to Molly because she'd gotten involved with a demon who wanted to release her dark side. Thing is, they'd actually asked her to go undercover with the guy to make sure he didn't interfere with your mission in the past. She's been spying on him this whole time."

Perry frowned, catching on to his twin's train of thought. "What if he found out? He could easily have cast a spell on her or used some potion to turn her evil."

"My thoughts exactly," Chris agreed. "Especially since, according to my friend, Kip, who Wyatt and I just got done grilling, she had no memory of either one of us a few days ago. Any information she'd gotten on us was second hand at that point."

"So maybe someone filled in all the wrong blanks," Perry deduced.

"Mhmm." He grinned suddenly. "You know, this was a lot easier than trying to get Wyatt to pick up on my train of thought. I think you and I could make one hell of a formidable team if you decide to stop feeling sorry for yourself and get back to the badass rebel leader rumor has it you were."

Perry smirked, rolling his eyes. He instantly regretted it as he was nearly overcome by dizziness and nausea. He lurched, putting his hand up to his mouth.

Chris wrinkled his nose. "You're going to hurl aren't you?" When his twin could only nod, it was Chris' turn to roll his eyes. He helped the other man up, rubbing circles on his back as he escorted him to the bathroom. "Wow. I can't believe you're twenty-three and have never gotten drunk before last night. My highschool experience would have seriously killed you."

After Perry had emptied the contents of his stomach, he scooted backwards until he was against the wall, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He muttered, "Where's a darklighter when you need one?"

Chris laughed from his spot leaning against the vanity. He squatted in front of his twin, holding a hand out to help him up. "All right. Come on. You'll be fine. Just a little hangover. I'll cook you some breakfast, get you some coffee and you'll be good as new."

Perry pulled a face. "Oh god. No food. Please. Don't even talk about it."

"I know it sounds awful, but it'll help. Everyone has a hangover food that cures them. We just have to find yours. I like fried eggs on english muffins with cream cheese. Casey has to have McDonald's cheese burgers. Wyatt gets his fix from tacos. Molly uses mint chocolate chip milkshakes."

Perry swallowed, squeezing his eyes shut. "Seriously stop talking."

Chris pulled the other man to his feet. "Let's try mine for you. FIgure our bodies probably respond the same way to things. So, you get cleaned up, I'll cook, and then, once you're feeling better, you're going to go talk to your Elder buddies and find out about some crazy ass potion they want Wyatt to make."

"Hey, Chris," Perry managed, thickly, "thanks. You know . . . for the wake up call."

"I know you don't have a lot of experience with this, but it's kind of what family is for," Chris said. When Perry's face flashed with pain, he continued more gently, "You're not alone anymore. Just stop fighting it so damn hard."

Despite the very strong urge to just lay on the cold tile of the bathroom floor for hours, Perry actually smiled weakly. He knew Chris was right. He'd been granted a second chance at life. No matter what happened with his love life, he had his family back. Nothing else mattered. Perry swore from this moment on, he was going to brush himself off, pick himself up and never look back.

000

Lucky Halliwell was not a cry-baby. He was tough like his dad. So, when the big kids said and did mean things to him, he didn't tattle. He knew he wasn't supposed to use his powers on other people either - Mom and Dad were real strict about that - so he just took it. Whether they stole his lunch, knocked his books down or said really mean things about him, he just gave them an angry look and silently waited for them to get bored and move on.

Only today, they said something he couldn't ignore. It made him so mad he just sort of . . . snapped.

Which was why when his Uncle Wyatt came into the classroom, three of the students in the advanced magic class were rats, which Lucky had trapped in a magically conjured cage. His Uncle could sense magic, like him, but he wasn't as good at pinpointing it, so at first, he just frowned, looking around the room for the missing students and trying to figure out where the powerful magic he felt was coming from.

The other three students in the class, who were not rats, were giggling and whispering to one another, giving telling looks to the cage on Wyatt's desk that hadn't been there the other day.

"Where are Nate, Gina and Mark?" Wyatt asked, his blue eyes instantly going to his nephew.

Lucky met his gaze with an all too familiar stubbornness in his green eyes and shrugged. " _No sé nada_."

Seeing the angry, defiant look on the young face, Wyatt could only sigh. The Chris in the child was strong. And frustrating. "Lucky, I can sense you cast a spell. What did you . . ." He drifted off as he caught where the other students were looking. His mouth fell open as he spotted the cage. Three rats. Definitely not a coincidence. He shot a disapproving look to Lucky. "Did you turn your classmates into rats?"

The other kids laughed outright now, stopping only when a thunderous warning glance came their way from their extremely powerful and currently aggravated teacher. They shrunk in their seats, making themselves busy reading their textbooks and reviewing homework.

"Lorenzo Perry Halliwell, tell me what happened right now," Wyatt said more sharply. When he was met with stone cold silence, he shook his head. "This is completely unacceptable. You know better than to-"

"-I hate it here!" Lucky suddenly yelled, eyes flashing with a staggering amount of anger, "and I hate you!" Then, he bolted out of the classroom.

Wyatt felt all the air leave his lungs at once, a sharp pain stabbing his chest. He flashed to a sixteen year old version of Lucky, and he could so clearly envision the same rage being directed at him. The same disgusted tone rang in his ears. His nephew hated him. Not quite six years old, and Lucky loathed him. It broke his heart.

Numbly waving his hand back at the cage containing the rats, he didn't even turn to see them transform back into teenagers. His eyes were glued to the spot Lucky had been standing in moments ago. He had to find him. He had to fix this somehow.

Easily sensing his nephew's whereabouts, Wyatt dismissed his class and orbed out. When the cloud of lights dissipated, and he reformed, he found himself in an empty corridor. Well, empty save for the little boy sitting on the floor sobbing into his arms. He softly, sadly questioned, "Lucky?"

"Go away," the muffled voice replied.

Wyatt hurried to the child's side, dropping down to his knees in front of the youth. "Lucky, why are you crying? What is going on?" When his nephew only sniffled in response, Wyatt put a hand on his shoulder, "Please, look at me."

Lucky lifted his head from his arms. The anger had gone, replaced by far too deep a sorrow for one so young. He couldn't look at his uncle's face, his eyes hovering somewhere around Wyatt's neck or chest.

"Why are you so upset?" Wyatt gently asked.

"Why do you wanna know? You don't even like me," Lucky muttered.

The Twice Blessed had been injured many times in his life fighting demons. Hit with darklighter arrows, energy balls, and even cut and stabbed a few times. Hearing those sad, hurt words uttered from his five year old nephew felt like all those things happening to him at the same time. "Lucky, I love you. I love you so much. How could you ever think I didn't like you?"

"Cause nothing I do is ever right," Lucky snapped. "You're always disappointed or mad at me. You only say how I mess up but never when I do good."

Wyatt's mouth fell open. Was he that way? Maybe. He was a little harder on Lucky than his other students, but it was only because his nephew was so incredibly powerful and bright. He could accomplish things so much more quickly than the others. Being that powerful himself and knowing how tempting using that power could be, he also wanted to make sure Lucky knew the responsibility that came with magic.

"'Sides," Lucky added, "you wish I was never born."

The statement served like a slap to the face. Wyatt blinked, not believing what he was hearing. How long has his nephew felt this way? It made a painful sting form at the back of his eyes. "No," Wyatt denied firmly. "You are my nephew, and I have loved you from the moment I found out about you. How could you possibly think I don't want you in my life?"

Lucky shrugged. "They told me you said it."

"Who told you?" When his nephew's eyes slid to the side but he remained silent, Wyatt put the pieces together. "The kids you turned into rats." He let out a sad sigh. Why did kids have to be so mean? He put a hand to his nephew's chin, gently raising Lucky's head, so he could look him straight in the eyes. "They lied, Lucky. You have to know that in your heart, right?"

Lucky sniffled but said nothing.

"Lucky?"

"They said I was an accident," Lucky half-sobbed. His little chin was quivering, his voice breaking as the tears started again. "N-no one really w-wanted me. That's why my m-mama and dad a-aren't married - th-they d-didn't m-m-mean to m-make m-me. I m-messed up ev-ev-everything."

Wyatt pulled his nephew into his arms, stroking his hair trying to soothe him. He wasn't sure what to say. This wasn't a conversation he, or anyone else thought they'd have to have any time soon. How could he explain such a complicated situation while still making it clear how loved Lucky was?

He closed his eyes, trying to channel his inner whitelighter for guidance. "Lucky, you were not an accident. You were very much meant to be. Your parents were surprised when they found out about you, but they loved you fiercely right away. They love one another very deeply too so don't think for one second you weren't made out of love. You were. They're best friends, who would do anything for eachother and for you. Plus, Molly and I loved you the second we found out about you too."

"Y-you d-did?"

The Twice Blessed pulled the boy back a bit to smile down at him. "How could we not? You are so smart and funny and brave. You amaze me everyday, Kiddo. I'm only hard on you sometimes because I know how hard it can be to have all these powers, and I don't want you to struggle like I did growing up. I love you, and I want the best for you, and for the record, I am incredibly proud to be your uncle."

"Really?"

"Really."

Lucky hurled himself at Wyatt, wrapping his arms around the man's neck tightly. "I'm really sorry for all the times I was mean to you, Uncle Wyatt."

Wyatt gently patted the boy's back. "Nothing to be sorry for, Lucky, and I promise I'm going to try to lighten up more. In fact," he pulled back grinning, "maybe we can do something fun just the two of us this weekend while your mom and Molly go shopping?"

"Yeah, that'd be cool."

Wyatt then asked, "Did you mean what you said about hating it here?"

Lucky nodded. "I'm always with the bigger kids since I can do so much, and they're mean to me, and the kids my age are scared of me. The teachers always pick on me or look at me funny too."

"How would you feel if I talked to your dad about not sending you here anymore?" Wyatt asked. "I think between your Grandparents, parents, me and Perry, we can teach you everything you need to know about magic. You'll be starting regular school in a few weeks anyway."

Lucky smiled widely. "That'd be awesome!"

"Consider it done."

"Hey, Uncle Wyatt . . ."

"Yeah?"

"I love you too."

Wyatt Halliwell actually felt his heart swell. Life was almost perfect right now.

000

Molly orbed into the kitchen of Halliwell Manor after finishing helping one of her charges deal with a low level warlock in New York. Her charge had finally listened to her advice and hadn't run into the situation completely blind as he was prone to doing, and the vanquish had gone perfectly. The normally anti-social teen had actually thanked her with a smile.

That, on top of the fact Chris was taking her on a lunch date in a little while, made Molly feel pretty darn fabulous at the moment. She took a seat at the table to wait for him, smiling as she put her head in her hands.

The front door opened and closed and a moment later a tiny latina whirlwind came into the kitchen with her arms full of grocery bags. Casey was moving so fast and with such focus she'd gotten most of her bags emptied, the contents put in their proper places in the kitchen and still hadn't noticed her whitelighter's presence.

"Casey?" Molly questioned with an amused smile.

Giving a little shriek, Casey dropped the container of orange juice she'd been holding. She flicked her hands, freezing it before it hit the ground. She wrinkled her nose, grabbing the carton and putting it on the counter. She turned to Molly, "Personal gain?" She looked at the juice and sighed, answering her own question, "Yeah, probably." She threw it in the garbage.

"I don't think the Elders bring the thunder for saving juice," Molly assured her. "Besides, you kind of have an in with one if you're worried."

Casey's head jerked up to look at Molly incredulously. "Excuse me?"

"Perry's an elder. I figure he'd speak on your behalf," Molly explained. She cocked her head, studying her friend carefully as the other woman fidgeted and bit her lip. "Unless . . . you two had a fight?"

"Since you're here, we should talk about the wedding," Casey suddenly announced.

The witch reached into one of the last bags on the counter pulling out a stack of magazines. She turned toward Molly with a huge smile on her face, practically bouncing as she rushed to her friend's side and plopped down next to her at the table, fanning the magazines out in front of her. " _MIra, mira_. So, I picked these up at the store. I thought we could go through them and see what you like and don't like and get some ideas from them."

Molly recognized the obvious avoidance tactic but couldn't help but smile at the impressive stack of bridal magazines the other woman had purchased. The excitement her friend was exhibiting as she flipped through the pages showing Molly various ideas was entirely real despite using it as an excuse not to talk about Perry. Her enthusiasm was surprising. Casey hated marriage, so Molly assumed she'd hate weddings too.

"Oh, by the way," Casey said with a clap, turning fully toward Molly, "food. Any idea what you want on the menu? Or the type of cake? Do you have colors picked? I can incorporate them into the cake. Or a theme? I am absolutely up for exotic cuisine or anything you might want. Consider me your culinary genie."

"You should probably talk to Chris about the food," Molly answered. "He's the picky one."

Casey rolled her eyes. "Yeah, no kidding. Not looking forward to Mr. Know-it-all hovering and criticizing me the whole time, _but_ it's his wedding, so I will suck it up. That said, you are the bride, so you do get the final say on pretty much everything, so I ask again: What would _you_ like?"

Molly shrugged lightly. "Um . . . I really liked that one cake you made at Christmas."

"Ooooh, a _tres leches_ with strawberries. One of my favorites. _Papi_ used to . . ." Casey's enthusiasm slid to slight sadness. ". . . he used to make it every Christmas. It was tradition. I wanted Lucky to have it."

A silence fell, and Molly softly questioned, "Casey?"

The witch shook her head, a smile back on her face but not quite as big. "I can absolutely do that for you. How about food - any ideas there?"

"Let Chris decide that. Really, I don't care."

Casey nodded. "Okay, and how many people are you inviting, so I know how many servings I'll need."

Molly blanched. She hadn't really thought about it. Hadn't thought about much of anything outside of being in some sort of white dress and walking toward Chris. She shrugged. "I, uh, I don't know. Close friends and family only I'm sure. We just want small and simple. Chris' whole family, my friend Bryan, and my . . ." Molly's face fell her stomach twisting painfully as she realized the one person she wanted most couldn't come.

Casey put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Molly? You okay?"

Tears were welling in Molly's hazel eyes, and she bit her lip trying to stop them. She fanned herself taking a deep breath to stomp out the sudden onslaught of sadness. "It's just . . . I hadn't thought about it before right now. I mean, I think about her all the time, but I know she's happy and safe. I watch over her sometimes, so I see her even if I can't interact with her, and usually it's enough. It's just . . ."

"Your mom," Casey breathed in realization. As the whitelighter let a few tears slip from her lashes, Casey pulled her into a tight hug. "Oh, Molly, I'm so sorry."

Molly pulled back, dabbing her eyes with a tissue from the box setting on the table. "It's silly. I mean, I knew all along being a whitelighter meant I couldn't interact with her again. It just hit me all the sudden. She won't be at my wedding. If Chris and I have children, she'll never know them."

"It's not silly, Molly. It's natural. You love your mom. Of course, you'd want her there for this. You're allowed to be sad about it."

"I'm sure you feel that way about your dad. Does it get easier?"

Casey let out a breath, thinking about how to answer. "Not really. I'm sorry. I wish I could tell you different, but there isn't a day that goes by where I don't wish my father had gotten to know Lucky. Hell, sometimes I even wish my mother would show up and ask to meet him, but that will never happen either. We're freaks to her."

Piper came bustling into the kitchen just then, a wide smile forming as she spotted the two women and the stack of magazines. "Hi. Wedding planning is in full swing I see?"

"Just trying to get some ideas," Molly answered.

Piper leaned over Casey to grab one of the magazines that had caught her attention. She started flipping through it. "Well, if you need any help, I am more than willing. After all, it's not every day one of my sons gets married." She casually added, "Though I was surprised Chris will be first."

Casey and Molly exchanged looks.

"Good men my boys," Piper went on. "All three. Different but in some ways the same. They love hard, they are fiercely loyal, and they're fighters - never give up when it matters. All good qualities to have in a spouse since marriage is not easy. Trust me." She shot a pointed look to Casey as she finished, "But no matter how hard making my marriage work was, how much pain it sometimes brought me, loving Leo and being his wife was worth it all."

Knowing the message was for her, Casey nodded, taking it in.

Obviously only pretending to look through the magazine now, Piper said, "You know, I remember planning my wedding. I wanted it to be perfect. I was obsessed with making sure everything went smoothly. Almost didn't go through with it when Prue ruined the ceremony the first time."

Molly's eyebrows shot up. "She what?"

"Oh yeah, but it wasn't really her fault," Piper said with a dismissive wave. She looked up with a wise glint in her eye. "Just saying, with magic and all that goes with it, try not to get too focused on the details. Just remember what the real goal is: Marry the man you love. Everything else, despite seeming insurmountable will work out. In fact, you may find magic will surprise you and make the day perfect in completely surprising ways."

The Halliwell matriarch tossed the magazine on the table and gave a little nod before turning to grab her car keys off the hook and head to the door. She paused just before leaving to ask over her shoulder, "Dress shopping at two tomorrow right?"

"Yes," Molly confirmed.

"Looking forward to it. You girls have fun. See you both tomorrow."

After the door shut, Molly turned to Casey an amused smile on her face as she said, "I think we both still have a mother in our lives after all."

Casey looked miserable as she said, "Yeah, who gave me a not so subtle hint about where she wants me and Wyatt to end up."

"Considering how excited you are about planning my wedding, are you sure you don't ever want one of your own?" Molly challenged.

The witch grew pensive and unnervingly serious. After a moment she asked, "As my whitelighter, you aren't allowed to repeat what I tell you to anyone, right? Not even Chris?"

"I don't like the sound of this but no. I can't."

Casey took a deep breath before quietly admitting, "I love Wyatt, and I want to spend the rest of my life with him but something happened when I was in the past. It could change everything. Could make him hate me."

"Wyatt could never hate you."

"I can't keep this bottled in anymore. It's literally making me sick, and you're my friend, so I am hoping you still will be after I tell you this, but, I'm saying this to my whitelighter now," Casey reaffirmed, "so it's strictly confidential?"

Molly nodded, feeling dread fill her stomach like rocks.

"Perry and I had sex . . . and I'm starting to think I'm pregnant."

TBC . . .

Hmm . . . I feel particularly evil after that chapter. Mwuhahaha! Okay, better now. :) Next time: We will finally find out why the Elders want the soul binding potion, and Molly goes wedding dress shopping with the Charmed Ones and a very awkward Casey/Perry. Stay tuned!


	22. You've Got a Friend in Me

This chapter is dedicated to sise87. I had zero motivation to write this until I got your kind review, so thank you again for just letting me know you're still reading :)

Chapter 22

" _Perry and I had sex . . . and I'm starting to think I'm pregnant."_

The words served like one too many plugs in the outlet of Molly's brain, and her internal breaker tripped shutting down the whole works for a solid five minutes. She just sat at the table staring at her friend and blinking every so often simply because her body knew to do so. At six minutes, her mouth opened. At six minutes and thirty seconds it closed again. Eight minutes went by before incoherent stuttering started. Finally, at ten minutes, Molly managed to say, "You suck."

"Um, okay. . ." Casey said. "I can't really disagree with that."

"No, you really super, I can't-believe-you-could-do-such-a-horrible-awful-thing _again_ suck." Molly shook her head. "How could you do this to Wyatt? Considering Perry was joined with Chris at the time, how could you do this to us? I thought you were my friend, but you slept with my fiancee? Really? Okay, yeah, so there are two of them, but you didn't know that while you were in the past. I'm so mad at you right now, and Chris is going to be furious when he finds out. Only, I can't tell him because I'm your whitelighter - oooh, you so totally suck."

Casey rose from the table, opened a cupboard, and grabbed a cup. Filling it with cold water, she moved back to the table and handed it to Molly. When her whitelighter just frowned at her, she explained, "You can either throw it at me or drink it. Your call."

Molly took the cup and looked between it and the other woman for a while. Finally, she flung the water straight into her Maid of Honor's face.

Casey gasped at how cold the water felt. The quick intake of air made her cough hard for a few minutes. When she was able to stop coughing, she wiped off her face with the sleeve of her shirt and asked, "Feel better?"

"Actually, yes. Yes, I do. That was just as much fun as t.v. and movies make it look."

"Glad to hear." Casey sat back down in the chair. "Can I explain now?"

The whitelighter gestured vaguely for her to do so.

"Perry has feelings for me - maybe even loves me- and he kept making passes at me," Casey started, not able to look at Molly as she spoke. Instead, she focused on one of the bridal magazines lying on the table, running a finger along the glossy cover. "Somehow, Barbas made me terrified of losing Perry. Anyway, between that and Perry saying all these really wonderful things and kissing me - well, you know."

Molly's eyes grew wide, realization dawning. "Your hair. It happened after you two had been together?" Off the younger woman's nod, "I bet he was using your fear of losing Wyatt to manipulate you. He tricked you into doing exactly what you always feared - you became Guinevere."

"Now that you mention it, those were my first thoughts afterward," Casey admitted. "I felt dirty and horrible and terrified of losing Wyatt forever."

"Did you know Barbas doesn't just bring people's fears to life? He has the power of suggestion too," Molly said. "Are you sure what happened was of your own free will? Or even Perry's?"

" _Joder._ "

Molly quirked a brow. "Is that a yes or a no?"

"I would have these thoughts pop into my head, and they sounded like me, but they came from out of left field. They were so strong I felt like I couldn't fight them though." She shook her head, floored by the revelation. "Why would Barbas go to all this effort just to ruin my life?"

Her whitelighter smiled weakly, giving a small shrug. "Honestly, aside from being a demon who thrives on fear and pain, it probably has more to do with Wyatt and Perry. Halliwells are strongest together. Wyatt, Chris and Perry while not Charmed are one powerful trio, but if Wyatt and Perry are fighting and Chris is stuck in the middle . . . ?"

"Less demon fighting and more in-fighting?"

"Exactly."

Casey wrung her hands, which were resting on the table. Her brown eyes were staring at them. Her voice came out small and broken as she asked, "Regardless of why it happened, what am I going to do now, Molly?"

Molly put her hand on top of her friend's. "It's going to hurt. It's going to be awful. Still, you have to tell Wyatt what happened. If anyone can understand he can. Magic made him cheat on you after all. It won't be easy, but you guys can get through this."

"He didn't have free will," Casey argued. "I did."

"You had a very old, very powerful demon putting thoughts in your head and using your fears against you. You wouldn't have done it otherwise . . . right?"

Casey's head shot up. "No."

"Then tell Wyatt."

Brown eyes were filling with tears. "It's going to kill him. Especially if I really am pregnant. I'd have a child with both of his brothers, and I'll never be able to-" She cut herself off. She changed words, "He wants a baby, Molly, but instead of it being his, it'd be his brother's. Again."

"Have you taken a test? Do you know if this is even something to worry about?"

"No, but I fainted yesterday. The idea of eating makes me nauseated. I get out breath walking up the stairs from the basement. I'm exhausted all the time. It's so painfully obvious, Molly, so I can't take the stupid test because I know what it'll say, and I don't want it to say it, which makes me horrible because if I am then I'm basically wishing away my own child, and I hate myself for that. I hate myself. I really just hate myself, Molly."

Molly pulled her friend into a hug, rubbing circles on her back. "It's going to be okay, Casey."

"How?" came the muffled voice.

"I don't know, but you're not alone, so that's something, right?"

Casey pulled back, her eyes misty. "You don't hate me?"

"No. I have a feeling there are forces at play here we don't even know about yet. My whitelighter sense is tingling." She pulled her friend back into a hug. "Don't worry, hon. We'll figure this out. Promise."

000

Perry orbed into the conservatory expecting to find Chris, but instead, he wound up square in front of Molly. The woman was dressed in her coat and shoes, her bag in her lap, which she was tapping impatiently with her fingertips. However, when she saw Perry, her face broke into a huge, warm smile.

"I'm not Chris," he felt the need to state just in case.

Molly laughed, blushing. "Uh, no. I didn't think so. Won't be making that mistake again."

He shoved his hands in his back pockets, nodding once. "So, why, exactly do you look so happy to see me then?"

"I'm going shopping for my wedding dress today, and I need a favor."

"From me?"

"Yup," she said, smile still wide. "You're the only one who can do it."

Perry frowned. "Uh, I actually just got back from a very long, very complicated meeting with the other Elders, and I sort of need to talk to Chris. I thought I sensed him here, but if he's not, then I need to track him down because the news I have is incredibly important. Like life altering important. So. . .raincheck on whatever it is you needed?"

"Chris is in the shower and then he has a big meeting with a potential client, so your news can wait."

A full on scowl set in on The Elder's face. He crossed his arms. "No. No, no, no. I am not getting the brush off again. This is important, and I am part of this family not some annoying whitelighter or Elder come to rain on everyone's parade. I'm not going back to that, so forget it."

Molly's smile slipped, and she got up from the loveseat to put a hand on his arm. "Hey, no one is brushing you off. Promise. Just . . .you want Lucky to be able to eat, right? Because I don't have a job, and Chris and Casey's catering company wasn't bringing in income while you all were in the past. This client can cover their expenses for a good while. Huge event for a celebrity."

"Low blow bringing in the kid," Perry commented. He sighed. "Fine. I can be reasonable. Just, as soon as he gets back you tell him to call me."

"What about my favor?" Molly asked, a mischievous smile reforming. "As you pointed out you are family, and I will be soon too so . . ."

Perry smirked at her. "Ha. Well played. Kind of manipulative for a whitelighter, but all right. What do you want?"

"Chris and I have done everything together since high school. I value his opinion above all others. Only . . he's not allowed to see the dress before the wedding, so I was sort of, maybe, a little hoping you might . . " She drifted off, her shoulders going up to her ears as she looked up at him hopefully.

The Elder blinked. "You can't be serious."

 _Two hours later_ . . .

Perry had never felt more out of place in his life. Everything was white and bright and cheerful. He felt like he half had to squint because the store was so blinding. He almost ran into some strange bride. Or was that a giant cupcake come to life? So much fabric. Everywhere. Thousands of dresses. How many choices did women really need? No wonder Molly felt she had to have an entire entourage for this decision.

"You look like you need one of these," Prue said, handing him a glass of champagne.

He eyed the glass for a moment, flashing back to his hangover yesterday. Then he heard a group of women screaming like high school cheerleaders on the other side of the store. He took it, taking a sip. "Thanks."

"Bit overwhelming isn't it?" his aunt commented.

"It's a lot of taffeta and lace."

Prue quirked a brow at him.

"I had five girl cousins plus Aunt Phoebe took me clothes shopping for school. I know things I wish I didn't."

His eldest aunt laughed while the Aunt in question stepped over to them to see what was so funny. When Perry and Prue only exchanged looks and laughed again, Phoebe pouted asking if they were talking about her.

"Perry was just saying he learned a lot from you, Pheebs," Prue explained, brightly.

Phoebe smiled widely, "Aw, really? That's so sweet I mean I - hey! Then why were you both laughing?" She lightly poked her nephew in the ribs while shooting her big sister a half-hearted glare. Both of them immediately broke into laughter again.

"What's going on over here?" Piper asked, eyeing everyone with a bemused expression. "Aren't we supposed to be waiting for Molly to come out of the room in her dress?"

"Nothing, Mom," Perry answered, still chuckling.

"Uh-huh. And why don't I believe that, Mister?" she questioned, hands on hips.

Phoebe couldn't stop herself from chirping, "Future consequences."

Prue sucked in her lips to stop from laughing when Perry crossed his arms and shot daggers at the empath. Piper covered her mouth with her hand, trying to hide her own amusement.

The youngest Charmed One and Casey came over to join them. Paige's face broke into a smile at the look on her nephew's face. "Aw, see I remember that glare." She scrunched up her face and lowered the register of her voice, "The you-girls-aren't-taking-this-seriously face." She laughed, a wistful look on her face. "Good times. Good times."

"I do not sound like that," Perry said. He noticed Phoebe bobble her head side to side, so he turned to look at his mother, who was pursing her lips and actively looking away from him. "Seriously? You too?" He threw his hands up. "Unbelievable. You know, I did not come here to get picked on."

Paige put her hand on his arm. "Gee, I'm sorry. You know I only kid because I love."

The young man rolled his eyes through a smile.

"Oh, that reminds me," Prue started, clapping her hands together, "Did Wyatt ever figure out what that um," she lowered her voice to a whisper, "potion was for? Did Bianca want it for you two?"

Perry edged a look to Casey, who was frowning in confusion. Seemed she hadn't heard about the soul binding potion Bianca had asked Wyatt to make on behalf of the Elders. He returned his attention to Prue. "Uh, no, not for Bianca. I actually was supposed to talk to Chris about it, but I guess he had to work."

Paige frowned. "Well, if not to get Bianca to remember the other timeline, so you two can get your happy ending then why?"

"I don't like the sounds of this," Piper agreed. "Do we need to be worried?"

Prue huffed. "I'd say any time the Elders are involved that'd be a yes." To Perry, "Sorry. No offense."

"None taken. I may be one, but I still hate them."

"In psychology they call that self-hate," Phoebe pointed out. Off everyone's annoyed looks, she shrugged defensively. "Well, it is. Just saying, if you hate being an Elder why don't you quit. Leo did."

Paige spoke through the side of her mouth, "Ixnay on the Leo-ay. Issues, remember?"

"No they patched those up before Perry . . . er, well, you know," Phoebe said with a wave of her hand.

"Oh yeah. Nevermind."

Piper shook her head. "You two are ridiculous. We're not that old, and you're already crazy."

"I'm not old-" Paige started.

Everyone else finished, "-You're classic."

She wrinkled her nose. "Said that before, huh?"

"Innyway," Prue said, "Perry, what do you know about the Elder's plan?"

"I'd rather not talk about it right now. I mean, aren't we supposed to be here for Molly?" He frowned realizing she had yet to come out of the dressing room. "Uh, does it normally take this long to try on a dress?"

Casey shook her head. "No. Now that you mention it I'm a little worried. I'll go check on her."

"I'll come with you," Perry said, handing his glass back to Prue.

"To the dressing room?"

He shrugged. "I'll wait outside. I just figured she wanted Chris here, so maybe she'd want to see me. I'm close enough she wanted my opinion on the dress."

Casey addressed The Charmed Ones, "We'll be right back."

As they weaved through the rows and rows of dresses heading toward the changing rooms, Perry awkwardly commented, "I noticed you haven't had any champagne."

"No, I did not."

"Any particular reason . . .?"

She edged a sharp look at him. "Seriously?"

"Sorry. I'm just worried about you. Is that allowed? Or can we not be friends anymore either?"

She sighed and paused mid-step, turning to face him. "I don't know. What happened the other night in Wyatt's apartment-"

Perry held up his hands, cutting in, "-Was completely unacceptable and will never happen again. I honestly have no idea what got into me. Those words didn't even feel like mine, and I am so sorry I tried to make a move on you. It was wrong and . . . why do you have that look on your face?"

"Barbas." The latina shook her head. "He's at it again. I'd bet money on it. Molly told me he has the power of suggestion, and I think he's been manipulating both of us this whole time, and I'm thinking he got to you in Wyatt's apartment too."

Perry's eyes dropped to the floor as he took in her theory. He slowly started to nod. "That makes sense. Considering what the Elders told me it fits. That's probably why they want you to-" He stopped.

"Want me to what?"

Instead of answering her, Perry continued on as if she hadn't spoken and started walking toward the dressing rooms again. "The Elders think evil is trying to turn Wyatt, Chris and I against one another. Demon named Nomed wants to bring down Camelot by making Wyatt feel like he can't trust anyone or that serving the greater good isn't worth it. They know about what happened with us. They saw it coming."

"They saw us?" Casey half-squeaked.

Perry pulled a face. "No, no, no. Not like that. Ew."

She let out a breath of relief. "Good. Last thing I need is to think Elders are peeping in on us. I'd never have sex again." She tilted her head, considering that. "Maybe that's not a bad thing."

"Case . . ."

"I'm kidding. Mostly." She took a deep breath and more serious again said, "We need to tell Wyatt the truth."

"I know."

"You do?"

Perry sighed. "Yeah. I was actually going to talk to you about that the other night before I apparently got mind-whammied by Barbas. The stress of lying isn't good for you if you're. . . you know. Plus, now with evil using the secret against us, we can't risk him finding out from someone else. Their version of events is likely to be even more painful for him."

Reaching the dressing room with Molly's name written on a small whiteboard, Casey lightly knocked. "Molly? Do you need help?"

A distinctly sniffle-riddled voice answered, "Go away, Casey."

Casey and Perry exchanged worried looks. Casey tried again. " _Mariposa_ , what's wrong? Talk to me."

"I'm not a butterfly," Molly choked out. Through a sob, they heard her add, "I'm a cow."

"Molly, let me in right this second," Casey said.

"Go away."

"No."

"Yes!"

"Molly. . ."

Perry rolled his eyes. "Forget this. Case, freeze the place."

The witch flicked out her hands, effectively putting the entire bridal boutique and all its non-wiccan patrons on pause. Which was when she remembered Perry wasn't part witch anymore and was also frozen. She waved a hand at him, looking sheepish when he gave her an annoyed look, obviously recognizing she'd accidentally included him. " _Siento_."

"Stay here."

"Where are you?-"

Before she could finish asking, Perry went up in orb lights, which drifted up through the top of the dressing room door and into Molly's changing room. Casey's eyebrows shot up when she heard Molly yell Perry's name in shock. This ought to be interesting. . .

Molly was sitting on a small bench in the changing room wearing her street clothes minus her shoes and socks. Her mascara was running down her face, her eyes red and puffy from crying, and she'd been hugging herself when Perry arrived.

Perry noticed several dresses out of their bags and lying in heaps on the floor. He stepped over one to squat in front of Molly. "Hey, what's with the tears? I thought you were looking forward to this whole dress shopping thing?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"You know how stubborn your fiancee is? I'm ten times worse, so I will literally sit here all day until you tell me."

Molly bit her lip, tears slipping down her cheeks. Her voice was so small as she said, "They don't fit." A sob escaped, and she looked down feeling ashamed. "None of them fit."

"You mean the dresses?" Perry asked. He frowned. "So try different ones."

The whitelighter shook her head, her breath hitching as she explained, "They said they don't have any bigger." She started sobbing as the rest of her thoughts came tumbling out. "I'm so fat they don't have a single dress in this whole store I can try on." She put her face in her hands, completely breaking down.

Where Chris would have hugged her and given her sympathy and love, Perry grabbed her shoulders and lightly shook her, scowling at her in anger. "Hey. Enough of that. You don't get to talk about one of the few people I actually like that way."

"It's true," Molly mumbled. "All I wanted was one day to feel normal and beautiful and have fun, and it's just awful. I feel just like that fat, ugly girl Chris took to Prom all over again. The whale in the prom dress they called me." She started crying again.

Perry put his hands on her face. "Stop it. None of that is true. You are really beautiful. Don't let some stupid teenagers from your past or a lousy piece of cloth make you think otherwise."

The whitelighter gave him a dubious look. "You think I'm beautiful. Really? Bologne."

"Excuse me, did you just call me a liar?"

"Come on, Perry, I know the type of women you go for, and I do not fit that mold at all. Casey's all tiny with her latin curves, and Bianca looks like she could be a lingerie model."

Perry grinned. "She's be pissed as hell if she heard you say that." He corrected, "Well, my Bianca would've been anyway."

"My point is you go for curvy - Not round. While I appreciate you trying to be nice, please, don't lie."

"You really think I'm that shallow? Listen, I fell for Casey because she was my best friend. I had no idea what she'd look like when we got older. Honestly, Bianca is incredibly beautiful, but if she weren't also strong and smart and funny, I wouldn't have fallen in love with her. So, when I tell you I think you're beautiful, I'm not lying."

Molly rolled her eyes. "Right. Because I'm such a sweet person, and real beauty is on the inside, right?" She shook her head. "If I had a dime for every time I've heard that one."

"While personality is way more important, and yours is great, I wasn't talking about that. Okay, so you're a bigger girl. So what? You've got curves in the right places and a killer face. Those hazel eyes and your thick black hair? Kinda exotic. Chris is a very lucky guy."

Molly couldn't help but smile. She wiped her face with her hands. "Thank you." She let out a breath, releasing the last of her sorrow. "Whew. Okay. Sorry you had to deal with my crazy there."

"I'm told this sort of thing is what family is for," Perry replied with a smile. He extended a hand to her. "Now, how about we find some place that understands beauty doesn't have a size, huh?"

Molly took his hand. "Yes, please."

As they exited the changing room, the two of them caught Casey looking fondly at one of the dresses hanging on a nearby rack. She even had small smile as she pulled the skirt out to look at the details. When she saw them watching, she dropped the dress as though it were on fire and blushed. "All better?"

"Yeah, we're going to find a different store. This one doesn't carry my size."

Knowing her friend's insecurities about her weight, Casey understood immediately what had happened. She put a smile on her face for Molly and said, "I actually know of a specialty place in Baltimore if we don't mind abusing our cosmic taxis a bit."

"I don't mind," Perry said.

Molly smiled. "I'll just go tell the sisters. Be right back."

Casey moved closer to Perry smiling up at him. "You did a really good thing just now."

"Contrary to recent behavior I'm a good guy, Casey." He hesitated before adding, "No matter happens, I really hope we can get back to being friends. I know Chris is your person, but growing up, you were always mine, and I really hope I didn't screw that up forever."

She took his hand, giving it a squeeze. "We are friends, Perry. One fight doesn't change that."

"So when do you want to tell Wyatt? Do you want me there?"

"No, I need to tell him alone. I need to find out the whole situation first though. I'll let you know when I know."

Perry squeezed her hand this time. "It's going to be okay, Case."

"From you lips . . ."

000

Wyatt smiled down at the photo in his hands. It was a picture of him with his nephew riding the fastest most terrifying roller coaster in the newly renovated Six Flags Amusement Park. The mighty Twice Blessed was screaming at a particularly sharp drop while Lucky was laughing hysterically looking like he was having the time of his life. It was one of the few pictures of just the two of them, so Wyatt decided despite the slightly embarrassing look on his own face he'd get it framed when they got home.

It had been the perfect day so far. Chris had made them both pancakes before getting ready for a big meeting with a possible new client. Then Wyatt had brought Lucky here where the little boy had drug him from one ride to the next with an excited smile the whole time. After spending hours here that passed like minutes, Wyatt had just realized it was lunch time and purchased them both nachos, popcorn and cotton candy. Chris would not approve, which is probably why Lucky kept saying how cool it was.

"We have to do the Tornado of Doom again," Lucky was saying. "It was sooo much fun, right?"

"Absolutely."

"Then the Pharoah's Tomb?"

"If that's what you want, Kiddo."

Lucky beamed at him before taking a huge bite out of his cotton candy, and Wyatt felt like a superhero. Forget vanquishing demons and saving the world. This was so much more rewarding.

 _Such a shame he's not yours_.

Wyatt's hands lowered, the photo falling to the table. He let out a regret filled sigh, his smile faltering for the first time all day. Lucky was planning out the rest of their time here, but Wyatt suddenly couldn't stop seeing Chris. Chris' green eyes and chestnut hair. Chris' nose. Even the way Lucky was gesturing excitedly was identical to his brother.

"You okay, Uncle Wyatt?"

"Hm?" He snapped out of his thoughts and smiled. "Sorry. Guess the food made me a little sleepy."

"I'm gonna use the bathroom, kay?"

"It's kinda busy here. I'll come with you."

Lucky gave him an annoyed glare. "I'm gonna be six next week, and it's just over there." He pointed behind them. He whined, "Come on, Uncle Wyatt."

"Ok, but don't talk to strangers, and come straight back to this table when you're done, deal?"

"Deal."

Lucky hopped down from the chair and made his way over to where the bathrooms were located. He noticed the line for the girls was out the door and spreading down the length of the path. The boy's bathroom looked pretty empty though. He pushed open the door and stopped dead in his tracks as he spotted Nomed leaning against the wall smirking at him.

"Why, hello, Lucas."

"You shouldn't be here."

Nomed pouted as though his feelings were hurt. "Now, here I was thinking we were friends. After all, I am the one who helped you get your father back."

"Uncle Perry said it was a trick, and the . . ." he lowered his voice so the other people wouldn't hear, ". . .spell you told me to do could'a sucked me away forever."

"Oh, but he underestimates you," Nomed argued. "I knew you were powerful enough and smart enough to handle it."

Lucky frowned, crossing his arms. "Whaddya want?"

Instead of answering, Nomed lightly pushed away from the wall to squat in front of the child. "Seems things are a great deal better between you and your Uncle Wyatt. That's good. Very good. Family should get along. Don't you think?"

"You're being weird," Lucky commented, eyeing him warily.

Nomed laughed. "Perhaps I am. I shall just come out and say it then. Some of my kind who are not your friend, like I am, want to hurt your family. They want to make your Uncle Wyatt and your Uncle Perry fight. They're going to tell Wyatt about Perry kissing your mother to make him cross at his brother."

"Momma said it was nothing," Lucky said. "Uncle Perry didn't know any better because he didn't remember anything."

"My peers are not going to tell him that bit. They'll make it seem as if your Uncle Perry is trying to steal your mother. How do you think Wyatt will react to that idea, hmm?"

Lucky looked worried. "Not good. I don't want them to fight. What do I do?"

"I think you need to explain to Wyatt how confused Perry was - that he didn't know any better. The sooner you tell him what happened the better." Nomed glanced around the restroom. When the last person aside from them had left, he said, "Now, I must be going. Good luck, Lucas." Then, he shimmered away.

After using the restroom and washing up, Lucky headed back to where his uncle was waiting for him. He climbed up on the chair, sitting on his knees so he was a bit taller. He felt like this was something one should be taller to do.

"Everything okay? You were gone awhile. I was getting worried," Wyatt said.

Lucky knew he couldn't tell the truth. His family hated demons, so they'd never want him talking to one. He'd get into trouble. "I was thinking."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." Lucky bit his lip in a way that was eerily similar to his mother. "See, I gotta tell you something, but you can't get mad. Promise."

Wyatt frowned. "Lucky what-"

"-Promise," the little boy insisted.

"Okay," The Twice Blessed agreed. "I promise. Now, what is going on?"

Lucky took a deep breath before saying in one long rush, "When we were in the past, Uncle Perry kissed Momma, but Momma said it didn't mean anything because magic made him confused, and he didn't know any better and that it wasn't ever gonna happen again, and I was really happy about it because I thought it meant Dad and Momma were gonna be together, but it wasn't Dad, and I actually feel okay now about you dating Momma and Dad marrying Molly, so I'm not happy about it anymore, and I just don't want anyone to fight, okay?"

Wyatt blinked.

"Uncle Wyatt?"

More blinking.

Lucky threw his hands up. "Oh great! I broke him. I'm gonna be grounded forever."

TBC . . .


	23. Promises, Promises

Thank you soooo much to sise87, Anthony and weiliya for reviewing the last chapter. Reviews seriously feed my muse and brighten my day :)

Chapter 23

Wyatt Halliwell took promises very seriously. In all his life, he'd never broken a promise. Only, now, he'd made one he wasn't quite sure he could keep. He'd promised Lucky he wouldn't get mad about what his nephew had told him. Even though he hadn't really known what he was promising exactly he'd still done it. It was why for three days he had avoided his brother and his girlfriend because he was pretty sure if he saw either one of them right now he'd break his word.

Casey had lied to him. By omission, but it still stung. If Perry had kissed her, she should have told him. Granted she'd told Lucky it meant nothing, but it was the sort of thing Wyatt felt he had a right to know. Her not telling him felt like maybe it didn't mean nothing. The thought terrified him.

Then there was his new brother. Perry had kissed Casey. Kissed _his_ girlfriend. Okay, so logically, Wyatt knew he probably hadn't known they were together at that point, so it wasn't an act of betrayal per se, but it still meant Perry had feelings for Casey. An attraction at least. Something deeper perhaps. Why had he kept the kiss a secret? Was he afraid? Or did Perry want to hurt him? Wyatt didn't know him well enough to say.

The Twice Blessed had managed to keep himself busy with demon hunting, running the club and teaching classes. He'd thrown himself into his responsibilities and had successfully avoided just about everyone. It wasn't a permanent solution, but he needed time to wrap his mind around what he'd found out before he confronted his girlfriend and his brother. It had been working until he decided to orb home for a shower after a long vanquishing spree in the Underworld.

Flipping on the lights in his apartment, Wyatt jumped slightly as they revealed Chris sitting on the sofa. His little brother had been sitting in the dark waiting for him. "You're a hard man to track down lately," Chris commented levelly.

Feeling guilty, Wyatt didn't meet his brother's gaze, simply shrugging and turning to open the closet by the entry and hanging up his jacket. When he closed the door he could feel his sibling's gaze on the side of his head. Chris was worried about him. Empathy wasn't required when it came to his brother. Wyatt always knew what Chris was thinking and feeling. Benefit of being close friends as well as siblings.

"So, my son told me something interesting," Chris started, eyes still locked on the side of his older brother's head. When Wyatt didn't move or respond, the younger man said lightly, "He thought he was going to be grounded for breaking your head. His words."

The corner of Wyatt's mouth twitched slightly. Leave it to Lucky to put it that way.

"You know at first I thought it was some sort of magical mishap," Chris continued. "Maybe he TK'd you into a wall on accident or hit you in the head with something. Then I remembered Lucky is probably more gifted with his magic than I am, so I ruled that out."

The Twice Blessed turned halfway toward his little brother. Chris was lounging on the sofa in a way to an outsider would look casual, but Wyatt recognized the tension in his brother's jaw and shoulders. The way his green eyes were a little darker and sharper than normal. His own blue pair couldn't hold their gaze, so he stared at the carpet finding an oily looking stain he hadn't known was there before. Probably from a potion gone wrong. Happened to him a lot. Potions weren't really his strong suit.

"Lucky finally told me what he told you, and how he's scared you hate Perry now." There was a long, thick pause. "Do you?"

Wyatt's mouth formed a thin line. When he looked up, the answer was expelled with a breath, "No."

Chris didn't say anything else for a moment, his expression blank. Knowing his brother as well as he did, Wyatt knew his sibling was studying him, weighing the response and determining whether it was honest or not. After several minutes of silence, Chris must have made his decision because the expression softened and he let out a breath. "Good."

"Why didn't they just tell me?" Wyatt found himself asking. His voice sounded weaker and sadder than he wanted it to. "The lie bothers me the most."

"You really can't understand why Perry wouldn't want to tell you he'd kissed your girlfriend?" Chris challenged. "You're a smart guy, Wy. Put it together. He came from a world where you two were fighting for years. For the first time in a long time, he has the chance to have his family back - including you. The idea of telling you probably terrified him. For one, he probably flashes to how his Wyatt would react. Two, he doesn't want to ruin his chances of getting to know you and be real brothers."

Wyatt hadn't thought of it that way. While he was worried Perry was afraid of him, he hadn't considered Perry was afraid of losing him. It made sense though. He knew Perry hadn't had a family for a long time, and when he had spent time with his family in the past, they had treated him with mistrust and even animosity. Wyatt's heart twisted as it dawned on him his new brother expected to not be accepted, even though being part of the family again was all he wanted.

"Casey is my fault," Chris said quietly.

Wyatt frowned. "Excuse me?"

The younger man leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands, which he suddenly found incredibly interesting. "I, uh, told her not to tell you."

The tone was lower this time. "Excuse me."

"I knew about the kiss," Chris admitted still staring at his hands. "She told me the morning before we all went to P3. She'd fainted on me, so I was pressing for information, which was when she told me. Perry had begged her not to tell you for the reasons I gave you. My advice was to forget it happened. I didn't see how it would help anyone. You and Perry would be awkward, and I know you're still a little insecure about my history with Case, and I knew this would bring that back up for you, so I told her to just pretend it never happened."

Wyatt worked his jaw, staring at the top of his brother's head. He folded his arms over his chest, trying very hard not to let anything explode. He didn't let his magic get away from him like their mother did. The ramifications would be much more detrimental.

Green eyes finally looked up to his face. "Wy, I'm sorry, but I honestly thought it would just be easier for everyone, especially since it really didn't mean anything. Casey loves you, and Perry just didn't know any better. He didn't remember this timeline."

"He wanted to kiss her," Wyatt pointed out. He paused before asking a question he wasn't sure he wanted the answer to. "Does he have feelings for her?" An uncomfortable look formed on Chris' face and Wyatt blew out a breath. "Great."

"It's complicated," Chris finally replied. "We were talking the other day, and I feel like I really got to know him. While he is attracted to her and there were some budding feelings on his part, he is still very much in love with Bianca. The feelings for Casey were all tied up with some very emotional things that happened to him when he was young, but mostly, they were friends and that's all he wants now."

Wyatt nodded and wet his lips. He had one more question to ask, and he was terrified of the answer. "Did Casey tell you. . .I mean if Lucky had time to walk in on them it wasn't just a peck, right? She couldn't have pushed him away right away. She kissed him back, didn't she?"

Chris sighed. "Yeah."

The Twice Blessed, all powerful witch, winced.

"It's not like some random guy kissed her, and she didn't pull away," Chris tried to explain. "Perry and I were merged in the past, so in her head, the father of her child and best friend was kissing her, so you know there were all kinds of messy, complicated emotions involved. You can't get mad at her for taking a beat to realize what was happening and figure out what to do."

Wyatt swallowed, nodding. Logically he knew that. It just didn't make it hurt any less. He admitted softly, "Sometimes, I just wonder if you wanted her if I'd lose her."

"I never told you this," Chris started, fidgeting a little on the sofa, "but I asked her if she wanted to get back together when I found out she was pregnant."

The Twice Blessed's head whipped up. "What?"

"I offered to leave Molly and marry Case if that's what she wanted. She said no. Wanna know why?" Off his brother's nod, "Because she wanted you. She chose you. Which, I'm not going to lie, was a huge relief because she and I were toxic as a couple, and the idea of losing Molly was killing me."

"So, I need to let this go."

"I would."

Wyatt let out a breath. "Should I tell them I know?"

Chris shrugged. "Up to you. Honestly, might help Case. She's been a guilt machine since it happened. Literally making herself sick."

Realization dawned on Wyatt's face. "It's why she fainted? She wasn't eating or sleeping because she felt so guilty about it?"

"Yeah."

"Is it bad that makes me kind of happy?"

Chris rose from the sofa, rolling his eyes. "Little bit."

"I'll talk to her," Wyatt said. "Let her know I'm not mad . . . much. As for Perry . . . I think it might be best to just never mention it. It's hard enough between us as it is." He paused, a small smile forming as he couldn't help but point out, "You realize you've become the middle sibling right? Mr. Peace-keeping, voice of reason."

"Ugh, really?" Chris pulled a face. "Who's brilliant idea was that? I suck at all this caring and sharing stuff."

Wyatt's smile grew wider. "Better watch out, Little Brother. I think your inner whitelighter is finally showing."

"I will hit you."

For the first time in three days, Wyatt laughed. It felt incredible. All the weight pushing down on him, the tension squeezing his chest, left, floating out and away with the sound. Leave it to Chris to make him feel better just like so many times when they were growing up. They were a great team. Whenever one was down, the other could always lift them back up.

"Oh, before I forget." Chris reached into his pocket, digging out a small envelope and handing it to his brother. "Here. There was another reason I came. This is from Lucky. It's for his birthday party in a few days. He said, and I quote, maybe chocolate cake will make Uncle Wyatt feel better. Chocolate fixes everything."

Wyatt shook his head. "Whenever I start to think that kid is all you Casey suddenly pokes through."

"Mhmm. It's eerie. He bites his lip when he's nervous or guilty, and I swear it's like I'm looking at her. Then there's the spanish, which I still don't speak, so that gets fun for me." Chris let out a very put upon breath. "Anyway, you think you can come to the party?"

"I wouldn't miss it."

"Great."

"Um, Chris, I know Lucky's been having some trouble making friends," Wyatt said carefully, "there will be other kids there, right? I mean. . .I worry about him. I know I wasn't very social as a kid either until you came along, but I don't see him getting a sibling any time soon, so . . . is he okay?"

Chris shoved his hands in his pockets. "Not many non-relatives invited I'm afraid. He just doesn't quite fit in yet. I'm hoping going to regular school in a few weeks will help since he won't have the family name hanging over him. Though, on a positive note, Casey got in touch with our favorite hunters, and they might be swinging by to drop off Mary for the party."

"You realize your son has a crush on her, right?"

"Oh yeah," Perry acknowledged. "I figured that out when sixteen year old Lucky was here. One mention of her, and the kid turned red to his hairline and started stuttering."

"She's five years older than him."

Chris shrugged. "Takes after his Uncle Perry I guess."

"Speaking of Bianca," Wyatt drew out slowly. "What are we doing about her? I mean, if she's evil, we may need to vanquish her, but if you're right, and she's under the influence of dark magic, she's an innocent we need to rescue."

"Perry's working on it."

Skeptical didn't quite cover the look on the Twice Blessed's face. "Is that really a good idea?"

"He's my twin," Chris replied with a smirk. "What do you think?"

"So, going to get in over his head, and we'll have to bail him out?"

"Pretty much."

000

Working in the underworld, undercover with demons to get information, Perry was in his element. For the first time in a long time, he felt like himself again. He was in control. He was fearless. He was cunning. He was Chris Perry again in this moment, and God help anyone who crossed him right now.

Sitting in an underworld pub nursing a demonic liquor that burned going down his throat and left him feeling somehow stronger and more alert, Perry watched the various patrons looking for the right target. The one who could lead him to Barbas or Bianca. So many of the creatures in this place were low level minions he was starting to wonder if he was wasting his time. They were ruled by their emotions, fighting and vanquishing each other over trivial arguments or competitions. Higher level demons had risen to power through patience or power, so they were either too smart to engage in nonsense or were strong enough others left them alone.

A promising subject flamed into the bar, killing a darklighter and stealing his drink. No one so much as turned their head, including the other darklighter the first had been drinking with all evening. Or day. Perry wasn't sure. It was always dark down here, so he often lost track of time. In any case, it told him the new arrival was known and respected enough to get away with such a move. He'd keep on eye on him for a while to determine whether it was worth engaging him.

"Having fun?" a silky voice breathed into his ear.

Perry didn't physically react. He kept his voice level. "Hello, Bianca."

"I like the disguise," she commented, sliding into the chair across from him. "Makes you look more like that handsome brother of yours."

Perry had glamoured his hair blonde and eyes blue, changing his build to a slightly shorter broader one so as not to be recognized. Knowing her game now, the barb didn't sting as much as it had at the club. His tone remained unaffected. "Nomed send you? Since you're apparently his lackey now?"

She didn't hide the flicker of anger quite quickly enough for him not to catch it in her eyes. "He's my lover. Not my boss. I don't take orders from him."

"Shame. I remember you enjoying a man who knew how to take control." He smirked at her before taking a swig of his drink.

Bianca's jaw grew tight, the muscle twitching as she fought to rein in her anger. While her face was mostly blank, her brown eyes were flashing dangerously. "I also like a faithful man, but I don't see any of those anywhere." She cocked her head in challenge. "Do you?"

Perry frowned, truly thrown by the statement. "What are you talking about? I was never unfaithful."

"Oh, please," she drawled, rolling her eyes. "Don't lie to me. I know the truth."

"Clearly, you don't."

The Phoenix stood so fast the chair nearly toppled while a dagger was conjured to her hand and at his throat in a flash. Her voice was low and cold. "Know this: Wherever you go and whatever you do, I will be watching, and when the right moment arrives, I am going to take great pleasure in watching you die a slow, painful death, you traitorous bastard."

Fast as a viper attack, Perry snatched the wrist holding the dagger and twisted it, causing the athame to drop to the floor while at the same time rising from his chair to grab and pin her other arm behind her. He pulled her back tightly against his chest, breathing into her ear, "Whatever they did to you, Bianca, I will save you. That's a promise."

"I don't need saving," she hissed over her shoulder. "And even if I did, your word is meaningless."

At which point she rammed the heel of her foot into his shin and threw her elbow back into his stomach, spinning to the outside in an attempt to free herself from his grasp. While she did manage to get one arm free, he held tight to the other, which he twisted and locked.

Furious, Bianca reversed the hold, twisting his arm and kicking out, landing a hard blow to his solar plexus, causing him to bend in half as all the air escaped his lungs in a burst. Most people would have fallen to their knees in pain, but Perry not only stayed upright but moved to grapple with her again.

They fell into a violent dance. Strike, block, duck, twist. Kick, sidestep, strike, turn, block, jab. Everyone in the demonic pub was watching, enthralled with the battle. A brute demon and a shapeshifter put their money on the Phoenix. Two darklighters were betting on the strange man they assumed was one of their own.

The duo landed on a table, smashing it. As they continued wrestling on the ground, Perry finally got the upperhand, using his strength and weight to pin her hands above her head and trap her legs. It surprised him. His Bianca never would have left herself open for such a move. While this version was skilled, she didn't have the life and death experience her counterpart had used to hone her fighting to perfection.

Bianca spit in his face. "I hate you."

"I've heard."

"Get off me."

"No."

The Phoenix tried to shift her hips to gain a better position and flip him, but Perry was prepared, locking her in place. She growled, furious.

"You taught me, Bianca," he said calmly. "I learned from the best, so I'm not letting you up until we talk. What do you think I've done to you?"

An evil look twisted her face. "You think you've won? Think again." She shouted. "He's an Elder! An Elder is in the underworld!"

"Son of a-"

Perry orbed them both out just as five darklighter arrows, two fireballs and an energy ball all came soaring at him simultaneously. They reformed in their spot, landing on the grass in front of the marble bench. His hold having slipped during the orbing process, Perry wasn't surprised when Bianca managed to flip him onto his back. He winced as he hit the ground hard, and her nails dug painfully into his forearms as she trapped him beneath her.

"Bianca, listen to me," he tried again. "I was never unfaithful to you. I loved you. I still do."

"Mist?" she spat.

He frowned. "I never slept with her, and the only reason I kissed her was because _you_ told me to. You knew she was attracted to me, so you told me to flirt with her for our plan. It was _your_ idea. One I fought pretty damn hard against." He realized then his and Chris' theory had been right. "You don't remember, and it seems your new boyfriend only showed you the parts he wanted you to see."

She lifted him up only to ram him back down into the ground. "Shut up."

"He played you," Perry went on. "Manipulated things. You're smarter than this, Bianca. Things can't possibly add up, and I'm sure you've noticed."

"Did I tell you to sleep with that blonde charge too?" she asked lowly, dangerously.

Perry did a double take below her. "Blonde charge? I didn't have a blonde charge." His brow knit together trying to figure out what Nomed had shown her. He closed his eyes as it came to him. "Oh of course."

"Coming back to you?" she asked snidely.

"It was the cleaners," he said. "They erased Wyatt, which meant I never met you. The sisters reset everything, so it never happened. Not really. And before you bring it up, the other blonde he probably showed you was a witch who had stolen the identity of the sisters. I admit I did kiss her, but it was a trick to help the girls get their powers back and considering she looked like Phoebe at the time, _believe_ me, I did not enjoy it."

The mask of rage and hate slipped. Brown eyes searched his with confusion. The ice mask soon went back up. "Even if I did believe you about those, you left me to die and fell in love with another woman shortly after. Like I was nothing to you."

Perry shook his head. "No, Bianca. I didn't abandon you. You told me to leave, so I could save our future. Prevent all of it. Casey didn't happen shortly after. It was almost a year later, and you were dead, Bianca. Gone. I had no one. So yeah, when my childhood best friend returned from the grave, I started making new dreams because I didn't think you were an option anymore, but you're here now. We have a second chance."

Her face was hard but her eyes were shining. "No. We don't. I hate you."

The Elder took a calculated risk. He lifted his head and claimed her mouth with his. When her grip on him loosened, he slipped his hands free and buried one in her hair and wrapped the other around her waist, tugging her body closer to his own.

Perry knew this woman better than anyone. Knew where and how to touch her. Knew if his hand ran up her side under her shirt she'd quiver under his fingers. Knew if he flicked his tongue lightly around the edge of her ear, she'd suck in a breath. He knew how to play her body like a fine instrument, coaxing the sounds and reactions he wanted from her with ease.

Bianca responded enthusiastically, reciprocating move for move, and Perry was certain of how this was going to end. He was almost desperate for it. She may not remember him or their life together, but he did. He could remember for them both because no matter what she _was_ Bianca. She looked and sounded and _felt_ like his Bianca, and he needed her. He loved her and even if she couldn't admit it, Bianca loved him too. He was sure of it.

Which was why when the blinding pain of an energy ball striking his chest filled his senses, the shock he felt was trumped by disappointment and sorrow. At least until he lost consciousness at which point he no longer felt anything

000

Molly was supposed to pick up a few supplies from the manor for Leo, who had forgotten to bring them to Magic School this morning. She'd gone up to the attic with a small satchel, easily finding the materials The Headmaster had requested, but as she was about to orb back to the school to give them to her future father-in-law, she'd sensed Lucky standing in the hallway and couldn't resist saying hello to her favorite charge.

As she headed down the stairs from the attic, she spotted the little boy standing with arms crossed in front of the closed bathroom door. He looked like a very small sentinel. A curious smile forming, she made her way over to him.

Lucky's face broke into a brilliant smile at the sight of his whitelighter. "Hi, Molly!"

"Hi, Honey." When he still didn't move from his post, Molly asked. "What are you doing?""

The little boy sucked in one side of his mouth and looked over his shoulder at the bathroom door. He returned his attention to Molly and shrugged. "I dunno. Momma said to guard the door. She was being weird, and Dad always says when girls act weird to just do what they say."

Lucky may not have any idea what was happening in the bathroom, but Molly was pretty sure she knew. She gave the little boy a smile. "Your Dad is pretty darn smart, that's for sure, but I think I can take over now. I know your Grams is downstairs, and she was asking for some ideas for birthday presents for you. Why don't you head down and give her some?"

"If you want me to go away, you can just say so," Lucky retorted, giving an annoyed look very reminiscent of his father. "I'm not stupid. I'm almost six now. I know stuff."

Molly fought not to laugh since the little boy was extremely serious and would definitely take offense at her finding humor in his statement. "Sorry. I forgot how grown up you are now. Sometimes I forget you aren't the little baby I used to sing to sleep."

Lucky rolled his green eyes in the most dramatic way an almost-six-year-old could. "I'm not a baby, Molly. You can't stay stuff like that at my birthday party. You'll embarrass me in front of Mary."

His whitelighter's brows went up. Wasn't she supposed to have another ten years before she had to worry about her future step-son thinking about girls? A little dazed, she asked, "They're coming?"

The little boy nodded smiling widely. "Yup."

"That's . . . nice."

"Molly?"

"Yeah?"

"You want me to go away so you can talk to Momma?"

Molly nodded then smiled lovingly at him. "Can I get a hug first though?"

Lucky rolled his eyes through a grin then wrapped his little arms around her in a tight hug. It only lasted a minute before he went up in a column of light. A second later Molly heard Piper's voice floating up the stairs reminding her grandson he had legs and should use them.

Shaking her head in amusement, Molly turned to the bathroom door and lightly knocked. "Casey? It's Molly. Can I come in?" No answer. "Casey?"

A moment later the door slowly creaked open to reveal her friend standing on the other side. She gestured for Molly to come inside the bathroom, stepping aside to give her room. Once the whitelighter took her place leaning a hip against the vanity, Casey turned toward her with a numb look on her face that made a knot form in Molly's stomach.

"You took the test?" Molly asked.

Casey nodded.

Molly said more than asked, "You're pregnant aren't you."

The latina hugged herself and let out a shaky breath. "No. I'm not. The test was negative."

Molly broke into a big smile moving to hug her friend when she noticed the other girl didn't seem happy or even relieved by the news. Her face fell to concern. "Casey? What's wrong? This is good news . . . isn't it?"

"Yes. It's just . . ." Casey bit her lip, her voice sounding small as she finished, ". . . I think I'm sick."

"You've been through a lot. It's bound to drain you, make you feel under the weather."

The witch's eyes were unseeingly staring at a spot on the ground. "I'm pretty sure there's more to it."

"Casey?"

"I die," she said softly. "We all know it happens sometime before Lucky turns sixteen. He said Wyatt didn't heal me, and the only reason Wyatt wouldn't heal me is if it wasn't supernatural. What if . . ." Her brown eyes finally met Molly's, shining with fear and sorrow, "I think I'm _really_ sick."

Molly stubbornly shook her head. "No. Listen to me, I promise you are not dying. You're just scared and jumping to conclusions. Like I said, you've been stressed and not sleeping or eating and-"

"- _Mira_." Casey pointed to the countertop of the vanity.

The whitelighter frowned but turned around to see what her friend was pointing at that could be so important. When she looked down her heart paused painfully. Her head whipped around and her hazel eyes locked onto her friend's face, questioning and afraid. "What is this?"

"Blood."

"I see that, Casey," Molly said, voice rising in panic. "How did it get there?"

"I coughed." Tears slipped off her lashes and ran down Casey's face. "I coughed up blood. So, no, I'm not pregnant, Molly. I'm dying instead."

TBC . . .


	24. Can't Fight this Feeling

Firstly, thanks so much sise87 and Anthony for your kind reviews. Your reviews really do keep this story going. Anthony, you're on the right track about Perry making a difference, and you'll see a bit why in this chapter . . .

Secondly, I have been pretty sick all week, so this may not be my best work. Hopefully, if it's not, you'll forgive me and keep reading anyway :)

Chapter 24

The first thing Perry felt when he woke up was the sharp pain of burned flesh rubbing against dirt. Stars filled the back of his eyelids, almost sending him careening back into unconsciousness, but he gritted his teeth and forced his eyes resolutely open instead.

He was lying on a floor of dirt, which was infested with tiny pebbles of various shapes and sizes. They dug painfully into his skin. Around him were the unmistakable black metal bars of a cage. Reaching out with his senses, he found what feared: A magic barrier. He was trapped in here.

"Look who finally decided to wake up," a sultry and painfully familiar female voice drolled.

Perry winced as he forced his arms to move into a half pushup position. His hands had been tied tightly at the wrists, and the rope burned as it rubbed his skin raw. The wound in his chest also hissed in agony, causing sweat to instantly bead on his brow at the simple effort of shifting his arms forward. He clenched his jaw and shoved upward on his elbows, so he was on his knees. His vision blacked out and the world spun, but he didn't topple over. Based on the fuzzy feeling in his head and the hard chills running through him, the wound from the energy ball was infected. Well, didn't that just figure?

Bianca squatted to his height just outside the bars of the cage, cocking her head to the side, her shiny mane of hair falling over her shoulder. Ice in her brown eyes she said, "Guess you're not quite the Casanova you thought, hm?"

Taking labored breaths, Perry shot back, "Yet, I'm still alive, so guess you're not the assassin you once were either."

Her jaw twitched. Once a more level expression had reformed on her features she countered, "You're alive for now, but trust me, when I'm through with you, you're going to wish you were dead."

"Said like a cliché villain," Perry tossed back. He forced an arrogant smirk to his face. "I mean, really, Bianca? This is just sad. I thought you were better than this. After all, _my_ Bianca would never have let herself get played by the likes of Nomed."

She conjured an athame to her palm and rose to her full height, slowly, a predatory glean in her gaze. The Phoenix said nothing her heated glare and tense posture spoke volumes however.

"Lynn would be so proud," Perry goaded. "Her little girl became the demon she always wanted."

The athame came flying with deadly precision toward his face. As soon as it came through the bars, Perry called out for the dagger, trapping it in orbs. He gestured with his fingers and the tiny cloud of light soared through the rope tying his hands. He then captured the athame in his hands and winked at his captor. "Forgot the magic can come in but not out, huh?"

"Don't pretend like you know me," Bianca growled.

Perry let out a watery laugh. "Baby, I know you so well it hurts, so if you want to keep playing this game, I can push your buttons all day."

"You have no sway over me," the woman argued. "You are nothing to me."

"Oh yeah? Then how come it took you so long to hit me with the energy ball?" he challenged, forcing his voice to remain confident despite how much harder it was becoming to get air in and out of his lungs. He leaned his head forward slightly, locking his eyes on hers. "You kissed me back. More than actually, and you can't fake the feelings you were giving off. Firstly, I know you too well. Secondly . . . you're not as skilled a liar as my Bianca."

Bianca flushed but her eyes remained hard. "Yet, you have a gaping hole in your chest to suggest otherwise."

"Panic reflex," he said, a challenge shining in his green eyes.

The Phoenix blanched and swallowed thickly. Something in her posture gave, and she turned her eyes away from him. After a painfully long silence, she said unemotionally, "It doesn't matter anyway." Her eyes slid back to him, sad but also determined. "The darkness will always win out. It demands destruction - yours and your family's. I can't fight what I am."

"You did before," he softly told her.

She laughed, the sound hard and bitter. "As you like to keep pointing out, I'm not her."

The air behind her rippled, and Nomed appeared a moment later. His smug face twisted into a pleased smirk as he took in the sight of the Elder trapped behind bars. He wrapped his arms around Bianca's middle, nestling his lips into the side of her neck as he purred, "Well, done, Love."

Perry rolled his eyes through a painful knot in his stomach at the sight. "Get a room."

Nomed's gaze narrowed, and he trotted over to stand directly in front of Perry with a self-satisfied smile splitting his face. He bent down to the prisoner's level and commented, "Believe me, _Elder_ , when we're done toying with you, I plan on it. I hope you picture every second of it too. She and I entwined in passionate embrace while your life falls apart around you."

"Believe me, _Demon_ ," Perry mocked, "while you have her in your arms, she'll be thinking of me. See, I don't need a potion to get a woman to sleep with me."

Nomed threw an energy ball toward the elder's gut in rage, but Perry orbed in and out of place avoiding the attack. Unfortunately, the use of his magic exacerbated his infected wound, and he crumpled to his side unable to quite contain the moan of pain which escaped.

Bianca's face filled with a horrible worry. An image had flashed in her mind of a different time and place. The man she loved was hurled into a table, breaking it to splinters. She had rushed to his side then, and her feet involuntarily followed the same path now. Lost in that memory, she breathed, "Chris."

Nomed's face twisted into an ugly, angry expression. He roughly yanked a potion vial from his pocket. He tossed it at the ground by Perry's prone form.

Red smoke swirled and hovered over Perry's body before it sunk into him. A magenta light flashed through him then faded. The Elder blinked thickly, trying to stay conscious, trying to piece together what the potion was meant to do. Only his teeth were chattering, body shaking hard with cold. His breath hitched right before he gasped and his mind gave way to the pervading darkness.

"What did you do?" Bianca demanded.

"Just taking precautions," he replied cryptically. He turned on her then, eyes dark with ill intent. "Not that you should care. Perhaps, I need to give you another lesson on what it means to be evil, hmm?"

As Nomed took a threatening step forward, he suddenly was lifted off his feet and hurled into the far side of the cavern, smacking the wall with a resounding thwack.

"Perhaps, we need to give you a lesson on how to treat a lady," Chris quipped.

Bianca whirled around to find Chris and Wyatt had both materialized in the cavern. While Chris lowered his previously outstretched hand to fold his arms and adopt a wholly cavalier appearance, the older brother had a stern, determined face, his blue eyes far harder and colder than she'd ever seen before. This was the true Twice Blessed, heir to Excaliber standing before her. Gone was the genial, boy-next-door. The man had morphed into a powerful leader, whose magical aura made the air buzz with dizzying power.

Wyatt set his gaze on Nomed and with the subtle lift of his chin had the demon upright and pinned against the wall. He stalked toward the demon while tossing lowly over his shoulder, "Deal with her, Chris. This one is mine."

Chris turned to Bianca, grinning. "So, Princess, which side are we playing for today?"

A deep scowl forming, Bianca threw out bitingly, "Go to hell."

"That's like telling me to go to here" he tossed back. "I have to ask, does the evil inherently cause an IQ drop because I assume Perry would have never fallen for someone so unclever."

A deep, pained moan drew his attention back toward the cage, where he saw Perry looking sickly pale and unconscious. "Oh shit."

During his distraction, Bianca shimmered away.

Meanwhile, Wyatt was standing dangerously calm in front of Nomed. His arms were clasped casually behind his back as he regarded the demon who had caused so many problems for his family. Who had tried to ruin his life by tampering with Perry's efforts to keep Wyatt good. His voice was a solid octave lower as he commented, "You made a grave error targeting my family."

"I'm not the one targeting you," Nomed replied, far calmer than he had a right to be in the situation. His brown eyes sought out Perry before returning to Wyatt's face. "If you were smart, you'd thank me for ridding you of him. He loathes you, and he will stop at nothing until he takes everything you hold dear." He paused for effect before finishing, "Starting with that pretty little girlfriend of yours."

"Oh, shut the hell up," Chris said as he jogged to Wyatt's side. He put his hand on his brother's arm. "We've got a problem. Perry's not looking so hot, and I can't get the cage open. My magic isn't strong enough alone."

"This will only take a moment," Wyatt replied tightly.

Then Nomed learned why demons had long feared the coming of age of the Twice Blessed Witch. With merely a thought and the blink of his eyes, Wyatt set the powerful demon aflame. Nomed's screams echoed off the walls before fading into the darkest pits of the demonic wasteland. The only remaining evidence he ever existed was the scorch mark smudging the cavern wall.

"Show off," Chris muttered.

Wyatt shot him a sidelong glance, allowing his tough guy face to crack into a smile. "Jealous?"

"So incredibly." The younger brother then shrugged. "Just a good thing I was blessed with all the looks to compensate."

"Uh-huh. Sure you were," Wyatt replied.

Perry, who had regained consciousness, grumbled through strained breaths, "Less witty repartee and more healing over here, please."

"Hey, he who is stupid enough to get himself injured and trapped in a magical cage does not get to dictate anything," Chris retorted.

Even so, Chris and Wyatt each put a hand out, palms touching and chanted 'The Power of Three will set us free' three times. With each consecutive repetition a blue shimmer sparked around the cage trapping their brother until the last refrain caused the bubble to burst with an impressive crackling and spark.

As Wyatt hurried to Perry's side and healed his injuries, Chris leaned against the frame of the cage and commented, "Going after Bianca alone was dumb. Seriously, and I thought I was reckless."

"You are," Wyatt commented dryly. "At least he had a contingency plan." He looked down at Perry and commented, "Clever use of your Elder ability; however, I have to say, it was incredibly unnerving to get a jingle from the underworld."

"Sorry," Perry coughed. "Desperate times."

Once Wyatt had finished healing the wounds, he offered his hand to Perry. As soon as the other man touched him, the older brother was thrown into a vision.

 _Casey and Perry were in an unfamiliar room. The young woman had her arms around Perry, their bodies pressed intimately close. Perry gently brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his fingers purposefully caressing her cheek. He dipped his head to kiss her deeply._

 _A pleased little moan sounded in the back of her throat as she returned the embrace with equal intensity. As they finally came up for air, she replied, "I owe you my life. I get to raise Lucky because of what you sacrificed for me, and I swear, I will spend the rest of my life showing you how grateful I am. How much I love you too."_

 _Perry smiled softly, resting his forehead on hers. "So . . . is that a yes?"_

" _Yes," she confirmed, a smile forming. "I will marry you, Perry Halliwell."_

Wyatt gasped as the image ended, and he was pulled roughly back to the present. He jerked upright, staring in horror at his younger brother's puzzled face below him. He was vaguely aware of both of his siblings saying his name but his mind was too full too hear them.

Barbas, unseen, watched in fascination as The Twice Blessed was sent reeling from whatever he'd witnessed in the obvious vision. The potion Nomed had thrown at the Elder wouldn't have caused it. No, that potion had been developed to toy with the Elder, not the Twice Blessed. This latest development was unplanned but interesting. Very Interesting.

Seemed these two brothers were destined to fight with or without the Underworld's intervention. Not that Barbas didn't fully plan on helping things along anyway. This was becoming too easy . . .

000

Molly's world had been irrevocably tilted on its axis. The splattering of blood particles she'd seen as testimony to how very ill Casey really was would not leave her mind's eye. The image kept springing up again and again, leading her mind down a very morbid, terrifying path. She knew they could save her - Lucky had said as much when he came back from the future the second time, but he'd also said it had been Perry to do it, and it had created a mess that ruined his future. It's why he'd warned Molly to keep Casey and Perry apart in the first place. As much as Lucky loved his mother, the fact he was willing to sacrifice her meant whatever happened in his future was _that_ bad.

"Have you seen a doctor?" Molly found herself asking. "I mean maybe it's not that serious."

Casey quirked a brow at her friend. "I'm coughing up blood. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's pretty damn bad, Molly."

"All the more reason to see a doctor right away," the other woman went on. "Did you make an appointment?"

The dark haired witch sighed, rubbing her lower back and wincing slightly. It took her a second to register what her whitelighter had said. She pursed her lips and nodded. "Yeah. Day after Lucky's party."

"No, no, no," Molly shook her head, frustrated. "That's days away. You can't wait. You need help now."

Casey, looking older and more tired by the minute, replied, "What's a few more days when we all know how this is going to end? I just want to give my son a nice birthday party. He deserves to have a worry-free, fun sixth birthday." Her brown eyes dipped to the floor. "It needs to be perfect just in case I'm not here for the next one."

"I know you're scared," Molly said, putting her hands on her friend's arms, "but this is just you avoiding dealing with it head on. Next you'll be telling me you want to wait until after the wedding."

Casey lifted her gaze to lock on Molly's. "Actually, now you mention it, I need you promise me something." She swallowed thickly, eyes growing moist. "No matter what happens, you and Chris have to get married. No postponing."

"That's stupid," Molly argued, her own eyes stinging. "We're not going to throw a party when our friend is sick. We'll wait until you're better."

The younger woman shook her head, a tear slipping down her face, which she roughly wiped away. "No. That's just it: We both know I'm not going to get better, Molly. It's what makes you and Chris getting married so important." Her voice dipped, but her eyes remained resolutely fixed on Molly's. "Once you're married, you can adopt Lucky. Give him the family stability he'll need. Promise me."

Before Molly could say a word their attention was drawn by the sound of familiar voices coming from the attic. "Sounds like the guys are upstairs. You know all three of them in the attic is probably a bad sign. We should go see what sort of magical trouble they've raised this time."

Casey opened her mouth looking ready to push for the promise again, but the fight seeped out of her. Her shoulders heaved, and she suddenly looked more tired and defeated than Molly had ever seen her. With a breath barely concealing an audible wheeze, she said, "Fine. I need to give Perry the news anyway."

As they made their way toward the attic they could more clearly hear the voices, though the conversation wasn't making much sense.

"I'm telling you I'm fine," Perry's voice cut through the door. "How about we focus on Wyatt, here, who's all weird about some vision he had, which obviously was about me."

Wyatt's voice, startled replied, "What? No. It wasn't . . . It was nothing."

"You are a terrible liar, you know?" Perry shot back.

As the girls entered into the attic, they saw Wyatt standing in the middle of the attic, arms crossed over his chest, a pensive look on his face. Chris was standing at the Book of Shadows flipping through the pages telekinetically while Perry sat on the sofa with his elbows on his knees and an annoyed scowl marring his features.

"Listen, I'm telling you this is a waste of time," Perry irritably shot toward Chris. "Obviously, the potion didn't do anything."

Chris shot him a look. "Now, I know you're not that stupid." He flipped a few more pages. "What color did you say it was again?"

"Red." He then glanced over to Wyatt. "You're being weird. Just tell me what you saw in the vision."

Wyatt shifted nervously, rubbing the tip of his shoe into the floorboard. Then, he noticed the women and forced a warm smile. "Oh, hey guys. How long you been there?"

Molly was standing out front and shot a questioning look to her fiancee who rolled his eyes in a long suffering manner. She smiled affectionately at him before returning her attention to Wyatt. "Not long. I take it there was a demon or a potion problem or both?"

As if in answer to her question, Perry rose from the sofa, his attention fully fixed on her. The dark look in his eyes was one Molly had seen before, but only from Chris, and it made her stomach coil in nervousness. He moved very closely to her, his hand brushing her hair off her shoulder as he gave her what could only be described as a seductive grin. "Wow, you are so beautiful."

Then, to Molly's utter shock, he kissed her. The only person Molly had ever kissed her in life was Chris. With Chris the passion was always underscored by a sweet, tender sort of love. It was safe and warm and made her melt like chocolate. This was not that kind of kiss. It was deep, thorough and nothing but lustful. It made her a little dizzy and left her breathless.

"Dude!" Chris' voice shouted from over by the pedestal.

Perry jerked backward. His green eyes were wide and startled, darting between Molly and Chris. "I don't . . . I mean . . ." His gaze finally settled on Chris. "I think the potion maybe did something after all."

"Ya think?" his twin shot back irritated. He dropped his head and started flipping through the book again.

Wyatt chortled. "Not so fun when he kisses _your_ girlfriend, huh?"

Perry whipped around to face his older brother. His skin had gone stark white and his eyes were full of guilt and fear. The Elder looked like he might be sick. "Wyatt . . ."

Casey started breathing erratically over by the door. She gripped the frame, trying to steady the intake of air. Her hand was massaging her chest, her face contorted in panic.

Misinterpreting what was happening, Wyatt moved to her side. He put a hand gently on her shoulder. "It's okay. I'm not angry. I was upset you didn't tell me, but Chris made me understand why you didn't." He looked back over at Perry. There was something just a little harder and colder about him as he addressed his brother, "Calm down, Little Brother. It's fine. Just one kiss, right?"

Perry slid a look to Casey, who shook her head subtly. He returned his gaze to Wyatt. "Right."

"Now, you try to steal her from me, and I'll have to kill you," Wyatt joked. Only something in his eyes made a shiver run down Perry's spine.

"Uh, guys," Chris broke in. "It's a lust draught."

Perry groaned, sinking back onto the sofa. He buried his head under his arms. "You have got to be freaking kidding me."

"What?" Wyatt wondered. "What's so bad about that?"

"There's no antidote," Chris said. "The potion has to run its course, which in this case means the only way to end the spell is for Perry to . . . uh, well, you know."

Molly shook her head, frowning. "Why would a demon do that? What's the advantage?"

"Bianca," Perry answered. "Nomed wanted her for himself, so he somehow convinced her I was incapable of being faithful. I've been trying to convince her it wasn't true, and that I still love her, but if she finds me with someone else, I'm screwed. Literally and figuratively."

"So, maybe we lock you in a room with Bianca?" Wyatt suggested. "Not cheating if it's with her."

Perry winced. "Yeah, that's kinda how I wound up with the giant hole in my chest. Whatever spell she's under has a strong hold. When it was threatened, it made her fight instinct kick in. Though, I do think given enough time, I can get through to her. I saw a glimpse of the real her a couple times."

"Okay, so maybe I can wing something?" Chris suggested. "Just because there is no antidote doesn't mean I can't make one, right? Or at least something to dull it?"

"Mhmm, yeah, willing to try anything." Perry was digging his fingernails into his legs, his eyes closed. A pained look was on his face.

"Perry?" Chris questioned.

"I really need the girls to leave," he answered tightly. "It's like waving steak in front of a starving man."

Casey started coughing hard. Her body was shaking with the strain. Soon all the color was zapped from her face, which was beading with sweat. Between dry, painful coughs, she sucked in air in wheezes. It became clear quite quickly she wasn't getting enough air and as her eyes rolled back, she sunk toward the floor.

Wyatt caught her in his arms, crying out her name in panic. He felt like everything started happening in slow motion. With his girlfriend in his arms, he lowered them both to the floor to try to rouse her. Which was when he spotted the smear of crimson on her chin. His thumb ran over it in numbed shock. He stared at it a long while, not comprehending. A sick dread filled him. He shook his head, his eyes stinging. He plaintively repeated her name but she remained utterly still.

"She's sick," Molly's quiet voice broke into his stupor. "She thinks . . . she thinks she's dying."

Wyatt would remember this moment as the catalyst for events that ruined his life.

TBC . . .


	25. Life is Short

Thank you so much to sise87, Anthony and kiara87 for your reviews. They mean a lot to me, and really inspired this chapter, which I think may be one of the better ones I've done. Also, thanks for the well wishes! I am actually feeling quite a bit better :)

Note the first: The lyrics in italic are Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol. I don't 'em.

Note the second: This chapter was incredibly emotionally draining to write, so I put in some easter eggs for myself. Those of you who recognize the characters - it's not intended to really be them. It simply amused me.

Chapter 25

 _We'll do it all._

 _Everything._

 _On our own._

 _We don't need . . ._

 _Anything . . ._

 _Or anyone._

 _If I lay here . . ._

 _If I just lay here . . ._

 _Would you lay with me and just forget the world?_

Wyatt was all powerful. He could level a city block with the flick of his pinky. Could hear someone's thoughts halfway across town if he tried. He could summon a protective shield rendering him nearly invincible. Growing up, the abilities he possessed had made him feel almost inhuman. Right now, he didn't have that problem. Right now, carrying the woman he loved limply in his arms into an emergency room, he felt powerless and frightened in an entirely human way.

After Molly's proclamation, Wyatt's brain had turned off save one thought: Save Casey. It meant he'd orbed to the back alley a block away from the hospital without waiting for any of the others. He'd run at full speed, her dead weight in his arms, her head curled into his chest, and he could only think about how her breathing was so shallow and wheezy sounding. Could only picture the flecks of blood when she'd coughed.

The sliding doors opened, and he found he didn't have to seek out help. Three young looking doctors all rushed over in their blue scrubs looking far too excited about seeing the unconscious woman in his arms. One tall blonde woman turned off to get a gurney while a cocky looking brown haired man about Wyatt's size started checking Casey's vitals and shouting unfamiliar abbreviations to the others. He said this one was his - like he was claiming dibs. Wyatt wanted to telekinetically strangle him.

The third physician was a shorter man with a baby face. He had short, curly brown hair and kind brown eyes. He alone addressed Wyatt while the others settled Casey onto the gurney and started wheeling her away without his permission. "Sir, are you the husband?"

Wyatt's heart twisted like a cloth being rung out. He didn't answer, his feet automatically heading after the gurney until a gentle but firm hand landed on his chest. He looked down to find the baby faced doctor looking sympathetically up at him. The Twice Blessed ran his hand over his face and through his hair, struggling to get a handle on his emotions. He could already see the sky outside darkening in storm as response to his pain and fear. He took a deep breath through his nose and shakily asked, "Where are they taking her?"

"They're going to take care of her" the physician answered carefully. "I can't really tell you more than that without knowing your relation to the patient."

"I'm her . . ." Wyatt contemplated lying. He didn't. "No. We're not married. Please, what's wrong with her? She was coughing blood, wheezing and she just passed out. Please, Doctor . . .?"

"O'Malley," the man answered. He looked torn, obviously feeling for Wyatt but not wanting to break the very strict privacy rules governing treatment.

The sliding doors hissed open behind him, and Wyatt turned automatically. A lifetime of fighting demons made one on guard for new arrivals regardless of surroundings. To his relief, it was Chris who jogged into the space looking panicked. He immediately stopped at Wyatt's side asking, "Where's Case? What's happening?"

"Are you the husband?" Dr. O'Malley directed to Chris.

Chris shook his head. "No, but I have a medical power of attorney." He pulled his phone out of his pocket, scrolled through something, tapping a few times and then handed it to the doctor for verification.

Wyatt's head whipped around. "You what? Since when?"

"She couldn't trust her mother, so we drew it up after Lucky was born," Chris replied, eyes on the doctor. "Well?"

Dr. O'Malley nodded, satisfied with the electronic verification. He gestured for the two men to take a seat, which sent both of their hearts racing and stomachs dropping. Sitting was for bad news. They expected as much, but the look on the doctor's face was so painfully understanding and grim they knew it wasn't standard bad news. This was 'the person you love is dying' bad news. Molly was right. They were sure of it.

After the brothers had taken their seats, Dr. O'Malley began slowly, "Your friend presented with what appears to be a severe pneumothorax, which means her lung has collapsed. My colleagues are running tests to determine the cause, but in the meantime, they're going to need to insert a chest tube to relieve the air compressing her lung. The fact she was coughing blood likely indicates some form of lung disease, but-"

"-No," Wyatt shook his head. "That's not possible. She's never smoked a day in her life. She's allergic."

"Cancer?" Chris asked numbly. He looked at the doctor. "Is that what you think?"

The physician tried to offer a reassuring smile. "There's no need to jump to conclusions. The only thing we know right now is the remaining lung sounded obstructed, so we need to find out what's causing that. Once we know more we'll let you know."

"How long will that be?" Wyatt demanded, sharper than he intended.

Chris put a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head in silent reprimand.

Long used to getting the brunt of family frustration, Dr. O'Malley let out a sad breath. "Hopefully, within the hour. I'll come fill you in as soon as I know more." He locked eyes on Wyatt. "I promise you."

000

 _I don't quite know . . ._

 _How to say . . ._

 _How I feel._

 _Those three words . . ._

 _Are said too much . . ._

 _They're not enough._

 _If I lay here . . ._

 _If I just lay here . . ._

 _Would you lie with me and just forget the world?_

Casey felt like she had cotton in her ears, everything was muffled, and the painful humming in her head wasn't helping. Her lower back hurt, her chest felt like it was in a vice grip, and she couldn't breathe. She felt like she was drowning on dry land. She could feel Wyatt's strong arms behind her back and knees. She could feel his heartbeat pulsing under her ear. He was scared. She wanted to open her eyes and give him some comfort, tell him no matter what happened, she loved him, but she couldn't.

Something shifted and she felt a hard surface below her. She could tell they were moving because her mind spun making her dizzy and nauseated. Someone slid their hand under her shirt, touching her chest with a cold circle - stethoscope she guessed. Someone else had put a small clamp on her finger. The voices grew worried.

A female voice said quickly, "Pulse Ox only 90%, she's getting cyanotic. She's clearly hypoxic."

"I hear severe Tachycardia. Pulse rate is 135 and rising," a baritone added. "This chick is toast if we don't do a thoracotomy. Now."

Those comforting words were the last she heard before the darkness fully claimed her.

 _Forget what we're told._

 _Before we get too old._

 _Show me a garden that's bursting into life._

 _All that I am . . ._

 _All that I ever was . . ._

 _Is here in your perfect eyes._

 _They're all I can see._

Casey was standing in the Halliwell Manor's garden. White chairs wrapped in baby blue and silver bows lined a walkway on both sides leading toward the white gazebo. Wildflowers lined the makeshift aisle, dazzlingly brilliant in shades of red, yellow, orange and purple.

The entire Halliwell Family was seated outside in their Sunday best. Even the boys' Grams and Great Grams had been summoned and were smiling widely at her. At least when Great Grams wasn't bickering with a smartly dressed Victor Bennett, who seemed more amused by her antics than anything. The twins were both beaming happily while Henry Jr. snapped his fingers in mock disappointment, a huge smile on his face. Paige was pretending not to be teary, rolling her eyes at something her husband said in her ear before lightly slapping his chest with the back of her hand. Phoebe's entire crew were crying openly, even Coop seemed misty-eyed.

She moved slowly up the aisle to find her high school friends, Kip and Jessica present as well. Kip gave her a double thumbs up while Jessica had her hand over her heart, a soft look on her face. A little further up sat Piper and Leo. Piper's eyes were melting chocolate pools of pride and joy, while Leo looked so purely happy his face was sure to burst. Next to them was Perry, whose arm was draped over Bianca's shoulders. He gave a nod of approval, a discreet smile on his face before bending to whisper something in Bianca's ear making her look at him in amused frustration, digging a finger in his ribs, eliciting a laugh. Based on the ring Casey saw on Bianca's finger, the two were happily married.

Casey next saw Chris and Lucky. They were standing up front in matching black tuxes with blue cumberbuns and ties. The son was standing in front of his father. Chris was mouthing the word, 'breathe' while smiling lovingly at her. Their little boy made a face and pulled at his tie until his father subtly smacked his hand at which point Lucky fiddled with the rings on the pillow he was holding instead, looking the picture of bored, and it made his mother laugh.

Molly was dressed in a champagne colored bridesmaid gown, looking classy and beautiful. As Casey drew near, she took the flowers Casey hadn't even known she was holding and pulled her in for a quick hug, whispering, "Congratulations. We love you so much."

Then, Casey turned and her whole world narrowed down to a pinpoint. Wyatt. Her sweet, handsome, funny, strong amazing Wyatt. His cerulean eyes were locked on hers, a telling shine to them as he gave her the same dazzling smile, which had been responsible for making her knees go week countless times over the years. He dipped his head to murmur in her ear, "Ready to become Mrs. Halliwell?"

Her heart fluttered into her throat, and she could only smile and nod.

Wyatt took her hands in his big, warm, powerful ones. She instantly felt steady, safe and calm. He was her rock. Her safeplace. Her everything. And he was fading away into blackness. . .

Casey could hear herself moan, and it hurt. Her mouth and throat were painfully dry. A funny taste, metallic and bitter was stuck on her tongue. She knew she was conscious because every part of her was in pain. Especially her chest.

Opening her eyes, she instantly regretted it and squeezed them back shut. She blinked a few times and caught someone sitting in a chair off to her left. She was going to turn her head when she felt tubes going up her nose. She tried to raise a hand to touch it only to find her right hand burn painfully as something pulled at the skin on the back of it. Her eyes slid down to reveal an IV hooked into her hand. Various monitors were attached to her chest and fingers and arm.

She tried to called out, but her throat was so dry the words came out broken and weak. "Wy-att? Wyatt?" Hearing herself so frail and feeling like a science experiment, her eyes started to sting, panic welling in her, and she tried to sit up, flight instinct kicking in.

Strong hands held her down, stopping her, which she realized was a good thing because the slight movement she had managed sent a blinding pain through her chest. Her vision blacked out a minute, and she became so dizzy she thought she may be sick.

"Shhh," a familiar voice soothed. "He'll be right back. I made him take a walk before he started an earthquake. You scared the hell out of him, so you're stuck with the less powerful but decidedly more handsome Halliwell brother for now."

Casey groggily turned her head toward the voice to find Chris leaning over her. His green eyes were dark and a little crinkle was between his brows. He wasn't hiding his own terror very well. Trying to lighten the mood she croaked, "Perry?"

"Fun-ny." Chris rewarded her with a weak smile despite the eye roll.

A pregnant pause filled the space between them before she asked, "What happened?"

Chris brushed her hair off her face, a somber look filling his. "Your lung collapsed. They had to put in a chest tube."

She blinked rapidly, trying very hard not to cry. "Lucky?"

"He doesn't know anything yet. Molly's watching him."

A knock on the door drew their attention, and the kind physician from earlier poked his head into the room followed by an older, sharp featured asian woman in a lab coat that identified her as Dr. Yang. While the young man, who was clearly an intern set about entering various numbers from the monitors into a tablet, the older doctor put on a grave smile and moved to stand in front of Chris and Casey.

"My name is Dr. Yang," the woman curtly introduced herself. "I'm a cardiothoracic surgeon, which means I specialize in conditions related to the heart and lungs."

"Surgeon?" Casey repeated feeling her stomach knot and twist. "Why . . . why do I need a surgeon?"

The woman's face showed nothing. Brown eyes were sharp with intelligence but seemed incapable of basic human emotion. "You suffered a collapsed lung, and your other lung wasn't functioning at normal capacity either. Due to this we ran many tests, including a biopsy." The surgeon paused, thin lips nearly disappearing in a stern line. Finally, she announced, "We found benign tumors as well as numerous cysts. One of those cysts had burst near your lung's edge, which is what caused the pneumothorax."

"Benign?" Chris repeated. "Not cancer then?"

Dr. O'Malley winced, his hands shaking as he checked the IV feed. It made Casey's throat feel thicker, and the monitor for her breathing started amping up. Off a nod from his superior, the intern pushed a button on the IV and a burning cold entered the back of her hand. Almost instantly Casey felt calmer and she realized they sedated her. The news was sedation worthy.

"Ms. Alvarez," Dr. Yang continued, "based on the biopsy and results from a chest x-ray I believe you have a very rare lung disease called lymphangioleiomyoma. LAM for short."

Casey couldn't seem to wrap her mind around the word. It kept slipping around in her head like a snake. In and out and over and under. She blinked groggily. These drugs were strong.

"So, how do we fix it?" Chris asked, taking control of the conversation since his friend obviously couldn't. "Drugs? Surgery? What?"

A tiny crack showed through the surgeon's steely mask. Her voice was low, almost but not quite sympathetic as she said, "There is no cure. Your friend will need a lung transplant, and even then life expectancy is only three years. The muscle cells will continue to grow abnormally, and I fear they may have already spread to her kidneys, which means the chances of a transplant are minimal."

Casey vaguely recalled thinking how her back had been hurting a lot lately. She'd also been really nauseated and not wanting to eat. Guess that explained that. Then she recalled the words three years and felt her eyes start to sting again.

Chris had balled his hands into fists, green eyes boring into the doctor. "And without the transplant?"

"I really couldn't say for sure without further testing."

"Guess," he ordered.

The intern softly whispered to Casey, "I know it's scary, but we're going to do everything we can to help you. There are drugs to lessen symptoms, and transplants happen in this hospital every day. Medicine improves every day too." He squeezed her fingers lightly in comfort. "Don't lose hope."

"Six months," the surgeon stated. "Barring complications."

Chris' jaw twitched, and Casey wasn't sure if it was the drugs or not, but it certainly looked like he was close to tears. Only Chris never cried. Well, she hadn't seen it happen since Molly's funeral . . . oh.

"Since you can't fix me can I go home?" Casey asked numbly. Her left hand immediately received a firm squeeze from Chris, who was staring fixedly at the doctor.

"Not yet," the surgeon said, her face softening just slightly. "I can't give you a definitive answer, but you'll need to stay here at least a week while we monitor your incision and oxygen levels. We'll know more when we get the rest of your test results."

Casey's eyes finally filled with tears, and she shook her head. "No. My son's birthday . . . I can't . . . I have to go home. I have to be with my son. _Quiero irme a casa. Quiero ver a Lucky. Sácame de aquí. Ahorita._ " She started trying to pry the tubes from her nose. " _Necesito ver a mijo."_

Dr. O'Malley held her hands, preventing her from removing the nasal cannula or any other of the tubes or wires. He was making shushing noises, and while his previous sympathy and gentle nature had been soothing before, she couldn't handle it anymore, flicking her hands and freezing him and Dr. Yang.

Chris took over holding her arms. "Case, you're going to hurt yourself. Stop it."

"I'm going to miss all the birthdays and first days of school and sporting events . . ." She was sobbing now, which only served to make the pain in her chest, back and throat burn in rage. She petered off, gasping and wincing. Broken, sounding small she finished, "I'm going to miss Lucky growing up."

Chris clasped her face in his hands, fixing her with shining but firm green eyes. "I swear to you I will not let that happen. If they," he gestured toward the doctors, "can't fix this than I will. Personal gain consequences be damned, you hear me? Our son is not losing his mom. He needs you." Chris' breath hitched, and he bent to kiss her forehead, murmuring, "I need you. I can't do this without you."

"Okay," she said through a shaky breath.

Pulling back, he brushed her hair away from her face again. "You have to unfreeze them before someone comes in."

She twitched her fingers in their direction, and the physicians unfroze. Dr. O'Malley immediately adjusted her meds again before ducking out of the room. Dr. Yang informed them the patient needed to rest, and they would return once the test results were back.

Alone with Chris, Casey felt the sedation kicking in again. Everything felt heavy, and her mind was growing fuzzy and warm. Still, she could feel the warm tears rolling off her lashes. She rolled her head to look at Chris. "I'm really scared. I d-don't . . . I don't want to die."

Somehow Chris managed to slide into the tiny bed next to her, careful not to snag any of the tubes or wires. He held her tight against him, placing his head on hers. "Remember when you got panic attacks and I'd orb into your room? Same thing. Just listen to my breathing and try to match it. Focus on the rhythm of my heart." He felt her breathing get more steady, though still unnervingly shallow. He squeezed his eyes shut. "You're not alone. I'm right here, Babe. You just sleep now, okay? I've got you."

Half-asleep, she asked, "His party . . . Lucky has to have fun. Don't let him worry 'bout me, _prometeme_."

"I've got Lucky covered," Chris said, the back of his eyes burning. "Just rest now, okay?"

A moment later she was asleep.

Wyatt appeared in the doorway, his face falling to despair as he spotted his younger brother struggling not to cry as he held his childhood friend. The Twice Blessed couldn't move, paralyzed with fear at what could have happened in the short time he'd been gone to put that look on Chris' face.

Realizing his brother had arrived, Chris quietly, carefully slipped off the bed making sure not to wake Casey. Facing Wyatt, he opened his mouth but no words came out. He winced, obviously not sure how to break the news. His eyes dropped, his adam's apple bobbing as he struggled with his emotions.

Chris had only ever cried three times that Wyatt could recall. When he'd realized Molly was dead, the day of her funeral, and the day Lucky was born, and the doctors told him his son might die. He looked precariously close to shedding tears now, which really only meant one thing.

"How long does she have?" Wyatt softly asked, already feeling the moisture in his own eyes rapidly building.

His younger brother struggled to get the words out, and his voice was thick when he finally said, "Six months but the doctor . . . I think that might be best case scenario, and I'm pretty sure this isn't."

Chris then relayed everything the surgeon had told them, and as he spoke, the Twice Blessed closed his eyes and felt warm trails of tears roll down his face. He swallowed hard, scrubbing his hand over his face trying to get a grip on his emotions. He'd nearly caused an earthquake earlier, having to go for a walk to clear his mind, but he was dangerously close to releasing so much worse right now.

Wyatt moved numbly over to the bed, looking down at the love of his life. She was so pale, chest barely moving. So many tubes and monitors everywhere. He'd always thought she was tiny, but right now, without her feisty attitude, she looked _small_. Fragile.

"I need to get back," Chis announced, running a hand through his hair, avoiding looking at either his brother or his friend. "I have to figure out how to help Perry with that potion, and I need to talk to Lucky about this. . .somehow."

Wyatt pulled up a chair next to the bed and palmed the side of Casey's face, his attention wholly on her. "Go."

Chris paused on his way out, putting a hand on Wyatt's shoulder. "If you need me or if there's any change . . ."

The older brother silently nodded agreement, eyes still locked on his girlfriend.

After Chris had disappeared out the door, Wyatt telekinetically shut it and lowered all the blinds. He took a deep breath, raising his hands over Casey's chest. He stared at them waiting for the familiar warmth to come, for the brilliant golden glow to appear. It didn't happen.

Thunder clashed deafeningly loud and rain began to hammer on the hospital roof. The perfectly blue sky was growing darker by the moment, and Wyatt found he didn't care. What good was having all this power if he couldn't even save the woman he loved?

 _She's going to die, and there's nothing you can do to stop it,_ a voice crooned in his ear. _You will fail her just like your nephew said you would._

Wyatt took Casey's hand in one of his while using the other to lovingly stroke her hair. He glanced up to the heavens. "You take her from me, and I'm done. No more Twice Blessed. I won't do anything for you people ever again. You hear me up there?" The ice of his eyes melted and raced down his face as he added brokenly, "That's a promise."

A loud crack of thunder punctuated his statement, and Barbas, who stood invisible in the corner, smiled.

000

 _I need your grace._

 _To remind me . . ._

 _To find my own._

 _I don't know where._

 _Confused about how as well._

 _Just know that these things will never_

 _change for us at all._

Molly picked up the book setting on the nightstand by Lucky's bed. _The Fellowship of the Ring_. There was a bookmark in the shape of a motorcycle sticking out the top, and the whitelighter flipped to the page it was marking. She cleared her throat, opening her mouth to begin when she was interrupted by her charge.

"-Where's Momma?"

She turned to look down at the little boy, who was sitting in the small bed next to her, back against the headboard. His hair was still wet from his shower, dark bangs dangling into his crisp green eyes, which were full of concern and distrust. Despite the brown motorcycle covered pajamas, he looked pretty intimidating for a little boy right now, and she swallowed nervously. "She's with your Uncle Wyatt. Remember?"

Lucky's eyes narrowed. "You're lying. I don't sense her at Uncle Wyatt's. Where. Is. Momma?"

"I didn't say she was at your Uncle Wyatt's," Molly corrected, flushing at being called out by a not-quite-six year old. "I said she's with him."

"We just met Tom Bombadil, and Momma said it was one of her favorite parts," Lucky said firmly. "She wouldn't skip it for a dumb date. Our bedtime story is important to her. She always says so."

Molly took a breath, trying to smile reassuringly and certain she was failing. "It is, but your mom couldn't be here tonight, so she asked me to read it to you. So, how about we find out about this Tom guy, huh?"

As she opened the book again to start reading, it disappeared in a swirl of orbs, soared across the room and hit the far wall with a resounding thwak before falling hard to the ground. Lucky's green eyes were burning emeralds as he stared at Molly. "Stop it. Stop lying to me! I'm not stupid. I can feel something is wrong. I wanna see my mom. I wanna see her right now!"

Molly put her hands on his shoulders, trying to calm him down and stop him from orbing away. "Okay, Lucky, calm down. Yes, something is going on right now, but your dad and Uncle Wyatt are taking care of it. You trust them, right? You know they'd never let anything bad happen to your mom."

Lucky deflated, visibly slouching in the bed. He nodded but his eyes were still hard.

"So, how about I read a chapter then you try to sleep. Maybe have dreams about your party?" Molly suggested. She rose from the bed to fetch the book only to have it telekinetically scooted away from her.

"Not that one," Lucky quickly stated. "That book is mine and Momma's. Pick a different one."

Molly sighed but nodded, crossing over to the bookshelf. She perused a few of the titles before picking one off the shelf. She held it out for Lucky's approval, and when he nodded, she returned to sit next to him on the bed. Opening the book, Molly had just read the first paragraph when the sound of orbs drew their attention to the door.

Chris was standing at the threshold, and one look at him made Molly's chest constrict and stomach drop hard. His red rimmed eyes were focused on his son, and the green of them looked hauntingly bright in the dim light.

"Dad," Lucky drew out, not missing the somber look on his father's face. His little voice was quivering as he asked, "Something bad happened, right?"

Chris nodded, swallowing thickly. He moved slowly across the space, taking a seat on the bed next to his son. He lovingly brushed the bangs back from the child's face before his hand came to rest on the boy's cheek.

"Daddy?" Lucky asked, slipping into the more childish title as fear gripped him tight.

"Lucky, your mom . . ." Chris took a shaky breath. "She's sick, Kiddo."

"We can make her soup," Lucky suggested softly. "You make me soup when I'm sick, and I feel better."

Molly didn't miss the distinct shine forming in Chris' eyes, and she realized if he was telling Lucky then whatever was wrong wasn't something he and Wyatt could easily fix. It meant Casey might not make it, and Lucky had to be prepared. With that thought, she squeezed her eyes tightly shut, her hand going up to her mouth to stop herself from releasing the pained gasp that wanted out.

"No, soup isn't going to fix this one," Chris answered slowly. "She's, uh," He licked his lips, struggling to get the words out. "She's in the hospital, Lucky. The doctors are going to try to fix her, but she's really sick, so I don't know when she'll be home."

Lucky's chin had started to shake. "W-what's wrong with Momma?"

"She's having a hard time breathing," Chris answered. "Her lungs aren't working right."

The child's green eyes were brimmed with tears now. "Daddy, is she . . . is she going to die?"

Molly's breath caught and she opened her eyes, focusing them on Chris. The love of her life was struggling to stay strong for his son. The child probably didn't notice the way Chris' adam's apple was quivering or how his eyes were dark like a thrashing sea, but she did, and it hurt her heart.

Chris' voice sounded brittle as he answered, "I . . . I don't know, Lucas."

"No! Momma!" Lucky cried. He immediately tried to orb out only to get pulled back down by his father. He struggled against Chris' hands, green eyes frantic as tears streamed down his face. "I have to see her. I have to see Momma. Let me go. _Quiero ver a Mamá! Déjame ir!_ "

Chris pulled the boy tight against him, stroking his hair, ignoring as tiny fists pounded his chest. He closed his eyes, tears finally slipping down his face too. After several more minutes of sobbing and struggling, Lucky finally went still in his arms, and Chris pulled back to look into his son's face. He wiped the remaining tears away, despite his own still falling. "Lucky, we are going to do everything we can to help your mom. I swear, I'm not going to rest until I figure out a way to save her. I just need you to be brave in the meantime, okay? Can you do that for me?"

Lucky sniffled as he nodded. He swallowed a half-sob. "C-Can I see her tomorrow?"

"We'll see," Chris answered. Before Lucky could argue, Chris whispered something into the child's ear and a moment later the youth's eyes slipped closed and he slumped forward into his father's arms. Chris kissed the top of his head before gently laying him down. He tucked the blankets around his son before rising to face Molly.

"It's that bad?" Molly said more than asked.

Chris nodded, his eyes not able to meet hers.

Molly swiftly moved to him, wrapping her arms around him, and no sooner had she done so then she heard his breath hitch in a dry sob. He was shaking in her arms. Chris. Indomitable, funny, neurotic Chris was breaking down in her arms, and it broke Molly's heart like nothing she'd ever experienced before. She put her hand to the back of his head, tangling her hand in his hair as she tried to soothe him.

Holding her desperately, Chris brokenly told his fiance, "I don't know what to do, Molly. Lucky told us this would happen, but . . . I can't lose her. I can't watch my best friend die. I can't raise our son alone."

"There's a way to save her," Molly told him. She kicked herself as soon as the words were out. Her need to comfort the man she loved had her speaking without thinking.

Chris pulled back to frown at her. "You say that like you know something."

Molly pursed her lips, cursing her slip. She couldn't take it back now. "Lucky's futureself told me there was a way to save her, but . . . it sounds like it may have bad consequences."

"Worse than losing her?" Chris questioned incredulously. "Molly, if you know something that can save my son's mother, you need to tell me."

"Nothing concrete," she hedged. "Just . . . apparently, Perry figures it out."

Chris took a moment to absorb the information before turning and walking away from her. As she chased after him, asking where he was going, Chris shot over his shoulder, "If Perry is the key to saving Casey, I'm going to go figure out how to save him from that stupid potion, so he's free to help her."

"But Lucky said it would be bad. The consequences-"

Chris whirled around on her, eyes flashing. "Damn the consequences, Molly. Telling Lucky his mother was sick damn near destroyed me just now. I'm going to do whatever I have to do to make sure I never have to tell him she's dead. You hear me? It's not happening."

Watching Chris stomp up the attic stairs, Molly knew she'd just made a critical error. Once that man got something in his head, there was no stopping him. If Perry saving Casey triggered some horrible, exploding chain of events, Molly was pretty sure she'd just lit the match.

 _If I lay here . . ._

 _If I just lay here . . ._

 _Would you lie with me and just forget the world?_

 _TBC. . ._

 _AN: So, everyone still want Casey dead? (Yeah, this was me trying to get the poor girl some sympathy after putting her through the wringer repeatedly. Figured I owed her one)_

 _Next time: Lighter fare! Kip and Perry have an amusing/awkward encounter, and Lucky's birthday party with some special guest stars!_


	26. It's My Party

Note the first: Thank you so much to sise87, Anthony and weiliya for your kind reviews. They never fail to bring a big goofy smile to my face. Not to mention my muse thanks you as well for she'd take off on me without your help.

Note the second: I do not own the special guest stars save for Mary since I made her up, and she's obviously AU since when I wrote New Beginnings I had no idea they'd still be going strong all these years later. Not complaining on that front ;)

Final Note: If references to homosexuality bother you in anyway skip down to the 000. It's very minor in my opinion, but you've been warned if that sort of thing bothers you.

Chapter 26

Casey is going to die. Again.

Those were the words which kept repeating in Perry's mind on a loop ever since he saw his friend collapse in the attic. Her face had lost all color save for the tiny flecks of crimson on her lips and chin. She had barely been breathing. Wyatt had caught her in his arms and just vanished in a frenzied flurry of orbs without a word.

Perry had wanted to follow him, but Chris had stopped him. Reminded him about the stupid lust potion he was still under. His twin had told him to start researching the book for powerful cleansing potions to see if any might work to cure his condition. Then Chris orbed away after Wyatt and Casey while Molly went to look after Lucky.

So, here he was, standing at the Book of Shadows feeling completely useless as his childhood friend potentially lay dying. He couldn't believe he was going to lose her all over again. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair.

" _Cheer up, Halliwell. It's not the end of the world. Your family stopped that last week, remember?"_ Casey's voice from his memory teased him, and he closed his eyes as the moment from his past played in his mind.

 _They were thirteen years old and walking home after a particularly trying day of school for Perry. A demon attack destroyed his science project the night before, and he hadn't had time to redo it, which meant he got a failing score. Then, he'd discovered he hadn't made the junior varsity football team, which his nemesis, Sam, had and rubbed in his face all day. Finally, he had been cornered at his locker by Sara Burnheart, who had asked him to go with her to the winter formal, and when he said no spread a rumor he was gay._

 _In response to Casey's earlier statement, Perry replied, "Every girl at school thinks I'm gay."_

 _Casey was reading a book as they walked and said without looking up, "I don't."_

 _Perry rolled his eyes. "That's real helpful. Thanks."_

" _What's the big deal?" she wondered. "So what if people think you're gay? I know you don't have a problem with that sort of thing."_

" _Not for other people," he said. "It's just_ I'm _not gay. I like kissing girls. I would like to kiss more girls in the future. I would like to eventually go on a date with a girl. Maybe the winter formal. Only, all the girls think I'm gay."_

 _Casey closed her book, hugging it to her chest, and stopped walking. She tilted her head to the side and frowned in curiosity as she asked, "What girls have you kissed?"_

 _Perry paused, nervously shoving his hands in his coat pockets as he shrugged. He avoided looking at her as he hedged, "Well, uh, I kissed you that one time. I guess that was really it."_

 _Casey grinned mischievously, "_ Ah vale, _I turned you gay." She barely avoided the smack to her arm that was coming her way, bolting ahead of him with a laugh. When she was a safe distance away she turned around with a serious expression, one hand on her heart as she told him, "You do you, Chris. Love is love. No judgement."_

" _I hate you," Perry replied grumpily._

 _She laughed again. "Oh, come on. It's a little funny."_

" _Fine," he challenged, "let's tell all the guys at school you're a lesbian, and we'll see how funny you think it is."_

 _She shrugged. "Go for it. Wouldn't bother me. There's only one guy I like anyway."_

 _Perry frowned, folding his arms over his chest. "Who?"_

 _Her amusement vanished, brown eyes wide before she immediately buried her face back in her book and resumed walking._

 _Perry quickly caught up to her, snatching her book from behind her and holding it up over his head, grinning when even as she jumped she couldn't get anywhere close to reaching it. He laughed. "God you're short."_

 _She glared at him. "Give it back, Halliwell."_

" _Not until you tell me who you have a crush on."_

 _Rolling her eyes she started to walk away from him only to immediately turn back around and leap toward him, reaching for the book. Catching him off guard, the result was the two of them tumbling onto someone's lawn, rolling around on the ground as they playfully wrestled over the book. It soon turned into a tickle fight leaving both of them laughing breathlessly._

 _Perry, having longer limbs and more strength, finally pinned his still laughing friend. He was chuckling and trying to catch his breath as he looked down on her, and as he saw her flushed, smiling face below him, her chest rising and falling with her laughter, his mirth faded to something else. Something that had been growing stronger the last few months._

" _What?" she asked between gasps._

" _Do you want to go to the dance with me?"_

 _Casey stopped laughing and blinked. "Seriously?"_

 _Trying to play it cool he shrugged. "Why not? We're friends, right?"_

 _She smiled up at him answering, "Cradle to grave."_

Cradle to grave. It was a saying they'd used a thousand times growing up. Only, he'd actually seen her put in a grave about six months later. Now, in a changed timeline, he might be forced to do it again.

Slamming shut the cover of The Book of Shadows, not having found anything useful, Perry cursed in frustration, fear and anger. He felt the heat of his magic burning his hand in reaction to his intense emotions, and he released a bolt of electricity across the attic. It burned a black mark into the wall. He found the destruction cathartic, so he let off a wild stream of lightning until a startled yip made him look over to the attic door.

Kip was standing in the doorway, hands covering his head. He remarked, "You about done there, Thor?" He glanced over to the scorch marks on the wall before turning to the elder. "What'd the wall do to you?"

Growing up, Perry had been friends with Kip in his timeline, but it had ended once Wyatt turned evil. The telepath, fearing for his life, had joined Wyatt. It had really put a damper on their friendship when Kip started killing other witches for his brother. Apparently, this version was a funny guy. Perry didn't find him amusing.

"What are you doing here?" he asked crossly.

"Had a run in with a Noxon demon, and I'm out of imp powder."

Perry had a smarting retort on his tongue, but suddenly, as he was looking at Kip, a warmth spread through him, and his thoughts grew fuzzy. His heart started racing, palms sweating as he observed the other witch. Kip was small for a man. Short and lean. Dark hair and dark eyes. Perry always had been drawn to dark features . . .

"You have got to be kidding me," Perry groaned as he realized where his thoughts were leading him. He started rubbing his forehead and taking deep breaths. "Kip, go away."

"Did you just think something about my eyes being pretty?" Kip questioned with a mix of shock and amusement.

Perry glared at him. "No. Now, get your imp powder and go."

Kip rolled his eyes before he sauntered over to the ingredient cabinet. Rifling through the various containers of magical herbs and powders, the telepath suddenly whipped around to give a wide-eyed look to Perry, who was gripping the podium for the Book of Shadows so tightly his knuckles were white. "What did you just think about my ass?"

The Elder squeezed his eyes shut in a wince. He took a deep breath through his nose and released it slowly out his mouth. When he opened his eyes, he found Kip staring at him, arms folded and one foot tapping waiting for an explanation. He scowled back at him. "Stop telepathing me."

"I would love to," Kip countered, "but your thoughts are practically screaming at me. About me, which is super distracting. Though, I guess this means I owe Chris fifty bucks."

"Why do you owe Chris fifty dollars?" Perry asked, completely lost.

Kip smirked. "Remember when we were in high school and Sara spread that rumor about you?"

Perry's face fell to shock. He knew the elders had changed people's memories to include him in this timeline's history, so it wasn't the idea of Kip thinking they'd all gone to high school together that surprised him. It was the fact the elders had included that particular episode of his life in their memory manipulation that floored him. He could have done without it. He supposed they found it amusing. He seriously hated the other elders. After all that crossed his mind, he finally realized what Kip was implying. "Wait. What? You and Chris bet whether or not it was true?"

"At the time I was pretty sure it was because you were both trying to get with Casey, but yeah, he totally said you were gay," Kip answered. "Which, based on the thoughts you're having about me . . ."

"No, no, no," Perry argued. "Not gay."

Kip shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Hey, Man, it's kind of silly to lie to a telepath. Besides, what's the big deal? The old stigmas died out a long time ago. Though, I do have to say, I'm not interested. I mean, let's face it, I'm a little out of your league."

Perry blinked. "Excuse me?" He pointed to Kip as he said, "You? You think you're out of _my_ league?"

"Short, dark and ruggedly handsome is in," Kip replied. "You're just a little too pretty. Even if I was into guys, which I'm not, this . . ." He wagged a finger between them. ". . . would never happen."

The Elder crossed his arms replying indignantly, "If I wanted you, I could get you."

"Nope," Kip shot back popping the 'p'.

Perry crossed the distance between them, staring down at the telepath with a challenging look. "Oh really?"

"Never. Gonna. Happen," Kip drawled.

The potion sent a flash of heat through Perry. His heart started to race, breathing growing ragged as his thoughts took a decidedly strange but erotic turn. The next thing Perry knew, he was pushing Kip against the potion cabinet kissing him.

"Oh, for the love of-!" Chris cried as he entered the attic and saw the other two. He telekinetically slid Perry backwards several feet. Turning to Kip, he questioned, "Him I get. He's under the effect of a potion, but is there something you'd like to tell me?"

"No, I'm not gay," Kip replied with a laugh. "I am, however, confident enough in my sexuality that it was totally worth it just to screw with your neurotic, stuffy, stick-in-the-mud twin though." Addressing Perry, "Kudos on the kiss. Didn't think you had it in you, Mr. Tightwad."

"If you think I'm a good kisser, you should see what else I can do," Perry replied huskily moving back toward the telepath.

Chris raised a hand, stopping him with his telekinesis. Sounding eerily similar to their mother, he threatened, "Do I have to put you in a crystal cage? Because I'll do it."

It was enough to temporarily snap Perry out of his lust driven fog, making him realize just what he'd done. Complete mortification crossed his face before he buried it in his hands. "This is officially the _worst_ potion ever." To Kip, "I seriously hate you."

"Well, angry sex is the best," Kip retorted with a wink.

Perry fidgeted in distinct discomfort while making a face mixed with rage and frustration. While at the same time, Chris sharply addressed Kip, "Stop messing with him. What are you doing here anyway?"

Kip frowned, taken back by the harsh tone. "Geez, where's your sense of humor? I figured it was a potion or spell gone wrong. I wouldn't have let anything really happen. Lighten up."

"No, Kip, I will not lighten up because there is nothing funny about anything right now, so just tell me what the hell you want so we can all move on," he snapped.

Perry's mouth fell open in horrible realization. "Casey. Chris, is she. . .?"

Kip's head jerked back and forth between the brothers, instant worry on his face. "What's wrong with Casey?"

"She's in the hospital because she has a rare lung disease," Chris answered thickly. He moistened his lips, struggling to finish, "She's dying. She's got maybe six months unless Perry can save her."

Perry whipped his head around. "What? What do you mean unless _I_ can save her? Don't you mean Wyatt? He's the all powerful one."

"I just found out when Lucky came back from the future the second time, he said you figured out a way to save her," Chris answered.

The other twin crossed numbly to the sofa, sitting down to put his head in his hands. He shook his head, completely terrified at the idea of having his friend's life in his hands. Especially considering he had no idea where to even begin to help her.

Kip had grabbed the imp powder off the shelf, and now turned back to look at Chris shifting nervously. "Listen, I'm sorry I was messing with Perry. I didn't know. I'll get out of your hair. Just . . . tell Casey I'm thinking of her? I'll try to visit her after I deal with the Noxon demon." He crossed to the door, pausing at the threshold to add, "Oh, and I'll break the news to Jess, so you don't have to."

"Thanks."

After Kip had left, Chris turned to Perry. "Okay, let's get you cured, so you can cure Casey."

"Great, no pressure there," Perry replied.

"If anyone can take the pressure," Chris said, "it's you."

Perry took a deep breath. He nodded digesting the statement. If Lucky said he was the one to save Casey then there had to be a way. Something he could do to save his nephew's mother. Whatever it was he swore to himself then and there he'd find it and make it happen. He met Chris' gaze and said, "Okay. Let's do this."

000

Perry had been cured of the lust potion two days ago but had been missing ever since. Chris assumed he'd become obsessed with finding a way to save their friend. Whenever he tried to sense for his twin the other man was either in the Magic School library, Up There, or in the Underworld. Perry's frantic, non-stop research suited Chris just fine mostly, but today was Lucky's birthday, and Chris had promised Casey their son would have a good time, and Lucky had specifically requested both of his uncles be present. Wyatt had been here earlier helping decorate and taking some pictures for Casey. He'd given Lucky his present then left for the hospital, but Perry was a complete no show.

Not that things were really off to a great start anyway. Chris was not a baker. He could bake, but it had never been his favorite part of cooking. It's why he and Casey were the perfect culinary team. She was an extraordinary baker and a trained chocolatier, so he handled appetizers and entrees while she created desserts so beautiful it was almost a pity to cut into them. Only, she wasn't here, so Chris was left to try to make the rather tricky chocolate cake their son had requested. It wasn't going well.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it," Chris cursed, throwing the bowl he'd been working with across the kitchen.

It did not splatter or even hit the ground though. It hung mid-air with tiny particles of chocolate suspended above it. A moment later, Piper Halliwell appeared in the kitchen and grabbed it, using her hand to knock down the particles which had escaped the bowl. Done assuring her kitchen remained clean, she turned a questioning look to her son.

Chris let out a huff. "Sorry."

Looking down in the bowl, Piper spotted a very liquidy chocolate sauce. She turned a soft gaze to Chris and asked, "Trouble with the royal icing?"

"It won't thicken," he grumbled. "I tried everything. Now it tastes funny too."

Piper gave a nod before gently setting the bowl down on the counter. She moved to stand in front of her baby boy, who was now a grown man trying to do right by his own baby boy. It broke her heart. The whole situation did. With a sad smile she told him, "You've done such a wonderful job getting everything ready for the party. Why don't you let me finish the cake?"

"Mom," Chris started, a shine growing to his eyes, "I know Casey and I aren't together, but for the first time, I feel like a single parent, and . . ." His head bowed. "I hate this."

Piper quickly pulled her son into an embrace, stroking his head just as she had done when he was little. Her own brown eyes starting to blur with tears she told him, "I know, Peanut. Me too."

Someone cleared their throat, and Chris looked up to find his father giving him a soft smile. Running a hand over his face to clear his emotions from it, Chris addressed his Dad with a strained voice, "Hey."

"Hi," Leo returned, blue-green eyes reflecting the man's desire to do just as his wife had and take his son into his arms and comfort him. He refrained though. Instead he took a deep breath and asked, "Is there anything else I can help with?"

"The games are set up out back?" Chris asked.

"Yeah, Lucky and Henry Jr. are playing with the bean bag toss," Leo confirmed. "The rest of your cousins are enjoying the other yard games and the appetizers you made. Your aunts are drinking punch in the conservatory, and if I'm not mistaken, I think the final guests just pulled up."

Andy's impressed voice could be heard from the entry, "Is that a '67 Chevy Impala? I haven't seen one of those in . . . I don't even know when."

"Sure is," Henry answered him. "Beautiful isn't it? I would love to drive her, but the owner is crazy possessive."

Coop must have joined them because he could be heard commenting, "It's not possessiveness. It's love."

Chris could imagine the eye rolls that comment drew from his other uncles. As it was he knew who the car belonged to and went to go greet them. The fact they were able to make it was going to really be the highlight of Lucky's party. Hopefully, it might finally put a smile on his son's face. Lucky had been the picture of miserable since the night Chris had broken the news to him. His normally energetic, mischievous son was walking around a shadow of himself. Chris feared what would happen to Lucky if Casey actually did die.

Pushing past his three uncles who were crowding the door to get views of the car, Chris forced a smile to his face as he spotted the trio coming up the driveway. Two middle aged men, who managed to still look in their thirties despite their harsh lives, and a very pretty young girl.

The younger and much taller of the men gave Chris a big smile upon seeing him. He extended a hand, "Chris, hey, it's good to see you."

"You too, Sam," Chris returned. He gave a nod to the shorter of the brothers. "Dean."

Dean gave a tight smile in return. "Hi there, so I assume there's food at this shindig?"

Sam shot his brother a reproachful look. "Dean."

The other man looked completely unapologetic. "What? I'm starving. We've been on the road for hours, and you wouldn't let me stop at that diner for pie."

"Is Lucky inside?" the little girl with soft brown hair and big green eyes asked Chris.

Chris smiled fondly down at her. "He's in the backyard. Head on back. I know he'll be super excited to see you, Mary." Once the girl had disappeared into the house, Chris addressed Dean, "Yes, there's lots of food. Feel free to help yourself to anything you find."

The man's face split into a big smile before he hurried after his niece into the house to find said food.

Sam laughed after his brother, shaking his head while sticking his hands in his pockets. "Uh, sorry for him. You know how he is when he's hungry."

"Don't sweat it," Chris replied. "As a chef, I appreciate his enthusiasm for food. I also appreciate you guys coming all this way for Lucky's party."

"I was glad Casey called me," Sam countered. "Our lives being what they are Mary doesn't often get the opportunity to just be a kid. Not to mention she adores Lucky. He's probably the only real friend she has with us moving around so much."

Chris nodded understanding. "Well, the feeling is mutual. Lucky actually has a bit of a crush on your daughter."

Sam chuckled. "Well, don't tell Dean. He's bound and determined to make sure she doesn't date until she's thirty. Not to mention while he likes you and your family, the whole witch thing is still a hang up of his."

"I guess if you hunt enough warlocks and dark witches that'll happen."

Sam glanced back toward the manor with a slightly confused frown. When he turned to Chris he asked, "Speaking of Casey, where is she? I'm surprised she isn't ushering us both inside for cake already. Every time we drop Mary off she's feeding us some new dessert. I think Dean's a little in love with her after that pie she gave him last time."

Chris couldn't stop the wince from forming. He dropped his eyes to the ground. "She, uh . . . she's . . ."

Sam Winchester was intimately familiar with the look on his young friend's face. He didn't need the words to know what was coming. He put a hand on the witchlighter's shoulder, giving him a sympathetic look that no one could resist opening up to. "What happened?"

Like so many others before him, Chris found himself telling Sam everything. Sharing feelings he hadn't even expressed with his family yet. When he had finished, he felt drained but somehow lighter.

Sam let out a breath taking it all in and feeling great sorrow over Casey's fate. He then told Chris, "I think I have an idea how you might be able to stop her from dying, but it'd break all kinds of rules."

There was no hesitation. "Tell me."

000

Lucky didn't feel like celebrating his birthday this year. Maybe never again. As much as all his big cousins tried to cheer him up, he just felt scared and sad and angry. He'd numbly played two games of bean bag toss with Henry Jr. before saying he was bored and going to get some punch. He was now sitting under the gazebo staring into his cup of fruit punch wishing very much to be somewhere else.

He didn't notice at first when someone sat next to him. Until a distinctly girly hand stole his punch cup and said, "What's up with you?"

The six year old turned his head to find Mary Winchester sitting next to him staring at him inquisitively with her bright green eyes. Her long brown hair was tossed up in a ponytail and she was wearing a brown flannel shirt over a white top with light jeans tucked into pink workman's boots. She was the prettiest girl Lucky had ever seen in real life, and he blushed at her attention before ducking his head back down.

She kissed his cheek. "Happy birthday, Kid."

Lucky turned red to his hairline, but a tiny smile formed. He couldn't stop the little fluttering feeling in his stomach. It was like being on the fastest, highest roller coaster ever. He was pretty sure he was in love. The grown ups would all laugh at him or call him cute, so he'd never say so out loud, but he was pretty sure he was going to marry Mary Winchester someday.

"Quite some party you got here," the young hunter remarked, taking in the sight of all the balloons, streamers, and games filling the yard. "Your dad really went all out."

The boy shrugged. "Guess so."

Eyeing her friend knowingly, she asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he mumbled, not looking at her.

Mary nudged him with her shoulder. "Come on now. It's me. You can tell me anything."

"My mom is sick," Lucky answered softly. The back of his eyes started to sting at the thought. He quickly rubbed his face on the back of his arm. He didn't want the girl he liked to think he was a baby. She already saw him as a silly little kid.

Mary put her arm around him looking at him softly, sympathy in her face. "I'm sorry. Must be pretty bad if all the angels in your family can't heal it."

"It's not magical, so they're not allowed," Lucky explained. He swallowed hard, fighting really hard not to cry in front of her. "I think she might die."

The girl gave him a gentle squeeze. "I hope not, Lucky. I know what it's like to lose your mom, and I don't want that for you."

"I'm sorry too," Lucky offered. The two sat in a sorrow filled silence for a while. Finally, Lucky said, "I don't want to be here. I want to be with my mom. Dad won't let me see her. Says she needs to rest. Only, Uncle Wyatt is with her all the time. He's with her now. I think Dad just thinks seeing her look sick might scare me. It won't though."

Mary tilted her head to the side contemplating what her younger friend was telling her. After a beat, she handed him his punch cup and got to her feet. "Wait here. I have an idea." Then she ran into the manor.

Molly came over then taking Mary's place next to her charge. "What were you and Mary talking about? Looked pretty serious."

Lucky shrugged and said nothing.

"Okay, well, are you having fun?" she tried.

The six year old slid her a look as though to say 'are you serious?' before turning his head away from her.

His whitelighter put her hand on his back looking worriedly down at him. "I know this must be really hard for you, but your mom would want you to try to enjoy yourself. Your dad got all your favorite food made and your Grams is finishing up the cake as we speak. Do you want me to get you a plate?"

"No."

Molly took a heavy breath. "Lucky, I'm worried about you. I know how scared and sad you must feel, so if you need to talk I want you to know I am always here for you. I love you very much."

Green eyes like hot emeralds narrowed at her. "You're not my mom, Molly. _Déjame solo_."

Molly felt her heart crack a little at the words. While she never would try to take Casey's place in Lucky's life or heart, she loved the little boy as much as if he were her own child. She had been there the day he was born. The day he took his first steps. She'd watched him grow up and helped raise him. His dismissal hurt.

It was about this time Mary came back with her Uncle Dean in tow. The hunter had a plate overflowing with food. He tossed a bacon wrapped jalapeño popper in his mouth. Smiling through the chewing, Dean gave a little wave to Molly with a garbled, "Hey."

"Hi, Dean," Molly returned, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice. She stood from her spot next to Lucky and looked down at the little boy with a sad smile. "I'll, uh, just let you catch up with Mary. I love you, Lucas. I'll see you later."

Lucky didn't look at her.

Dean frowned at him. Swallowing his food, he scolded, "Hey, not cool. Molly is talking to you. Show some respect."

The six year old looked up at Molly. He mumbled, "Sorry. Love you too."

As Molly went to go find Chris and see if he needed help with anything, Dean took a seat next to Lucky while Mary leaned against the gazebo. The hunter held his plate toward the boy. "Want a popper? They're delicious."

"No thanks," Lucky answered. Remembering who he was talking to he added, "Sir."

Dean shrugged before putting another in his mouth. Chewing minimally before swallowing, he said, "So, my niece here tells me you aren't enjoying your party. Looks like your dad put in an awful lot a work trying to make it nice for you. What gives?"

"I want to see my mom."

"I see," Dean said nodding. "Thing is, I was talking to your grandparents, and they said your mom is pretty sick, and I get you wanting to see her. Really I do. Just, she may not look so hot right now. Tubes and wires and machines all over. She probably doesn't want you to see her that way. Grown ups don't like looking weak in front of the kids they love."

Lucky let out a breath, thinking of what he wanted to say. His green eyes met Dean's, firm and resolute. "She's my mom. I don't care what she looks like. I miss her, and I'm scared I'm never gonna see her again. Please, Mr. Winchester, can you take me to her?"

The hunter's face softened, his mouth falling into an understanding line. He took a deep breath, putting his plate down on the ground. "If we do this thing, you can't look sad or scared. You've got to be tough for your mom. Can you do that?"

"I'm a lot tougher than people think," Lucky answered, the look in his eyes reminding the hunter of a boy much older than six.

Dean turned to find his niece looking at him in a pleading, hopeful manner. He blew out a long breath. "Yeah, all right, Kid. I'll bust you out of here. We'll go see your mom."

As Lucky threw his arms around Dean's neck, the hunter knew he was doing the right thing. He just hoped Chris Halliwell didn't try to vanquish him for it.

000

Wyatt spent all his free time by Casey's bedside. Today was the first day he hadn't been able to come right away. He'd been busy with a shipment emergency at the club and helping Chris with Lucky's birthday party by blowing up balloons and hanging decorations. He'd promised to get Casey some digi-captures of the party and bring them by, but Lucky looked so miserable in all the shots Wyatt was contemplating telling her he'd forgotten.

Lucky had begged him to let him come with to the hospital, but Chris had made it very clear he didn't want his son seeing his mother looking so sickly. He was worried it would make Lucky even more afraid of losing her. Not to mention Casey was so tired all the time, and the drugs often made her a bit loopy. Wyatt had told him not this time, and thankfully, Henry Jr. had distracted Lucky with a game of bean bag toss so Wyatt could sneak off.

Long used to the winding halls of the hospital, Wyatt could have found Casey's room with his eyes closed at this point. He came up to her room and spotted a new nurse, a young woman with strawberry blonde hair and a sweet smile, checking Casey's vitals and noting them in a tablet.

"This must be the famous Wyatt," the nurse said. She shot an approving look to her patient. Through the side of her mouth she said none too quietly, "You're right. He is ridiculously good looking."

Casey nodded enthusiastically. Her voice sounding a bit drugged she added, "You should see him when he turns around. Best butt in San Fran."

The most powerful witch to ever live turned a lovely shade of red. He drew out her name in admonishment. When the two women merely started to laugh in response, he resigned himself to eye-candy status and gave his girlfriend a chaste kiss before resuming his normal spot by her bedside.

Giving Casey a jealous head shake and smile, the nurse said, "Doting boyfriend that looks like that - You're a lucky lady."

" _No te jode,_ " Casey agreed taking Wyatt's hand and smiling up at him.

After the nurse informed them both she'd be back in an hour to recheck vitals and give more medicine, she told Wyatt it was nice to meet him then took her leave.

"It's true you know," Casey said, looking up at him with complete adoration. Only the slightly sleepy quality to her tone gave away her less than sober status. "You're the most beautiful man inside and out. Blue eyes as calming as watching ocean waves roll in. Smile as warming as the sun."

Palming her face, Wyatt smiled down at her and said teasingly, "Aw, Sweetie, they gave you the good drugs today didn't they?"

She wrinkled her nose at him. "I'm saying how much love you, and you're making fun of me."

"I love you too," Wyatt replied stroking her cheek with his thumb. "You're just not normally so sentimental that's all."

"Pain meds are nice. Either that or dying has that effect on me." She frowned. "The word dying makes everything sound so melodramatic."

Wyatt shook his head. "Don't joke about it. It's not funny."

Casey put her hand up to his face and smiled faintly. "Wyatt, don't look so sad. We've got a little time left, and I don't want to spend it with everyone being miserable. And when it's all said and done, I want you to be happy. I know it won't happen right away, but promise me, someday, you'll move on. Find a nice woman who-"

"-Stop it," Wyatt ordered sharply. His eyes were full of pain and sadness as he looked down on her. "I'm not talking about this. I'm not thinking about it because you're not going anywhere. Even if you did . . . you're it for me. You are the love of my life. I have never loved anyone else, and I never will."

The time stopping witch took his hand, giving it a squeeze. "Wyatt, we have to be realistic. My lungs are full of cysts and tumors. The tumors have spread to my kidneys, which are failing. Sure, I can do dialysis and take a ton of drugs to help with symptoms, but it's not curable."

"Dialysis?" Wyatt questioned. "When did they talk about that?"

"After they release me next week, since I'll be off all the high dose pain meds by then," Casey answered. "Four hours three times a week. They want me to come early for chest x-rays those days too in order to make sure the medicine for my LAM is doing what it's supposed to do."

Wyatt rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. He couldn't look at her face just then for fear of what may happen to his emotions. He'd flashed flooded the city the day she'd been admitted, and while there, luckily, hadn't been any damage he still felt guilty for losing control like that. It was just when it came to this woman, she was his everything. The idea of losing her broke something in him.

"Have Molly and Chris finished the plans for the wedding?" Casey asked, breaking into his thoughts.

"Angel, they aren't going to have a wedding with you being sick," Wyatt said gently. "No one feels like celebrating."

The tiny woman rolled her eyes. " _Idiotas_. They cannot put this off because of me. Besides, I'll be out by then, and I, for one, think we need something to celebrate. Next time I see Chris I'm going to have to give him a piece of my mind. He needs to marry Molly, and I would like to be around to see it."

Wyatt moistened his lips, closing his eyes in pain. "Please, stop saying things like that."

" _Siento_ ," Casey told him. For his sake, she changed the subject. "So, I haven't seen Perry. I thought Chris said he cured the lust potion after he caught him making out with Kip." She laughed. "God, saying that does not get old. I wish I could have seen the look on his face when he realized what he was doing."

Wyatt smiled. "Anyone ever tell you, you've got a bit of a mean streak?" When she just shrugged, he laughed. "Yeah, he's been cured. Though, I haven't seen him either. Chris says he's working on something important, but he hasn't told me what."

"I guess I'm a little surprised he hasn't come to visit me," Casey said, looking a little hurt.

 _Now, why would she be so bothered by Perry not visiting? Unless perhaps she has feelings for him, hmm?_ a voice whispered in Wyatt's ear.

"What does it matter?" Wyatt found himself asking, sounding irritated. "It's not like you've known each other all that long."

Casey frowned, taken back by the edge to his tone. "We're still friends. I thought he'd care."

 _Sounds like she wants him to care . . . your love and attention aren't enough for her._

"What? I'm not enough?" Wyatt challenged, suddenly feeling jealous and angry.

The other witch did a double take. For a minute all she could do was blink in shock. Confused, she asked, "I know I'm a little high at the moment, but did I miss a turn somewhere back there? How did saying I was surprised my friend hasn't visited result in you not being enough for me?"

 _Didn't really answer the question, did she? Funny that. Wonder if maybe, just maaaybe she knows you won't like the answer. After all, you know she let him kiss her. Maybe she liked it more than you know. Maybe there's more to it._

"You're avoiding the question," Wyatt said, the timbre of his voice lower and colder. "We never got a chance to talk about the kiss between you and Perry because you got sick. Was there more to it? Do you have feelings for my brother?"

Casey felt like she'd been slapped. Her face grew warm and her brain temporarily wouldn't think. She had no idea what was happening or why Wyatt was suddenly so angry. He'd said he'd forgiven the kiss, but maybe not? Maybe he found out more had happened between her and Perry? But then why not say so? What had triggered the bomb that had just gone off? Just mentioning Perry? It didn't make sense.

 _She certainly is taking her time answering what should be such an easy question. Trying to think of a suitable lie perhaps?_

"Answer me," Wyatt demanded in a voice with far too much control. Like at any minute things were going to start exploding.

Casey was about to answer a resounding no and demand right back what had gotten into him when she saw a new arrival at her door. Her face melted into surprised happiness. Tears welled in her eyes, her focus entirely on the little boy standing unsurely at the threshold. " _Lucerito_?"

Lucky ran across the distance between them jumping up onto the edge of her bed to hug her tightly. He buried his face in her hair murmuring, " _Te extrañé mucho, Mamá. Te amo."_

" _Te amo también_ ," she replied, holding her little boy close, ignoring the burn in her chest as her stitches pulled. It was worth it. She eventually pulled back slightly, but cupped his head in her hands to drink in the sight of him. "What about your party?"

Lucky shrugged. "I know Dad tried really hard, but I don't want my birthday without you."

"Oh, _Lucerito_ , we just didn't want to worry you. You're a little boy. You deserve to have fun and be happy."

The child fixed her a resolute stare. "I wanted to be with you. I'm not a dumb kid. I can handle it."

Casey lovingly brushed his bangs from his face. "You're not dumb. Far from it. Your dad and I just want you to enjoy being a kid while you can. Your magical destiny makes things hard enough for you. I don't want you to worry about me."

"I had to see you," he told her. "Seeing you makes it better not worse."

Casey pulled him into her again, kissing the top of his head. She had no words. She just clung to him, soaking in the feel of her son in her arms. The smell of his rain scented shampoo. He was her world, and out of everything she was terrified of letting go, he was the top one. No contest. Her love for her child was the only reason she wasn't sinking into a pit of despair with her diagnosis. She had to be strong for him. She would go down fighting because of him.

Lucky's muffled voice shakily confessed, "I don't want you to die."

Tears slipped down his mother's face. "I don't want to leave you, Lucky. Never. You are the best thing I ever did. I love you so much." She pulled him back gently to stare into his downcast face. "Listen to me - I'm going to fight for all I'm worth, okay? But, no matter what happens, I'm going to need you to be extra good for your dad. He's scared and sad too, so you need to look out for each other. Can you promise me you'll do that?"

Lucky nodded. " _Sí._ I promise."

"Now," Casey said, "does your dad know where you are?"

The little boy shifted nervously, face sheepish. "Um . . . no?"

"Lucky, did you orb here alone?"

Lucky shook his head. "No, I rode in the impala with Dean and Mary." He broke into a big smile. "The impala is wicked cool. You should ask Dean for a ride. You'd love it."

"Hi there," Dean made his presence known with a small wave. "Hope you don't mind, but the kid wasn't taking no for an answer."

Casey, smiling widely, shook her head. "No, it's fine. Thank you for bringing him that was very nice of you. Right, Wyatt?" She turned to where her boyfriend had been sitting but found the chair empty. She glanced around the room with a puzzled frown. "Wyatt?"

Dean shoved his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels awkwardly. "Uh, hate to break it to you, but he took off right when we got here."

Mary, who was standing next to her uncle added, "He went into the supply closet and then did that orbing thing. I could see the light under the door."

Casey felt a knot grow deep in the pit of her stomach. Wyatt left without saying goodbye. Picked a fight with her and then vanished before they could have it out. It wasn't like him. She didn't get a chance to focus on it though as Lucky had started telling her about the party, making a special point to tell her Chris had to redo the cake three times because it wouldn't turn out and Grams ended up finishing it.

Listening to her son, Casey smiled feeling better than she had in a long time. Her eyes met Dean's across the room, and she mouthed a 'thank you' to him. The hunter broke out into a humble half-smile and nodded back to her.

At least Casey knew there were plenty of people who loved her son. Who would even risk going against the wrath of Chris Halliwell to assure his happiness. It was a huge comfort to her. Especially given the news the doctor had given her this morning.

Chances were, she wouldn't make it to see the end of the month.

TBC . . .


	27. Where Do Broken Hearts Go?

My muse feels so spoiled thanks to the wonderfully kind words of Kiara, Anthony and gabyhatt. Reviews make the world go round . . . well, at least of this story. :)

We're getting close to the end folks. Hold on to your hats and thanks for sticking with me!

Chapter 27

Graveyard dirt. Check. A black cat bone. Check. Yarrow. Check. The last item Chris needed was a photograph of himself. In an age where everything was electronic, a physical photo was actually the most difficult ritual item to find. Fortunately, he'd found an old album of his mother's containing a picture from a Halloween when he'd been a baby. He was dressed in some silly wizard outfit. If Wyatt ever saw it, he'd be teased mercilessly forever. Good thing it was going in the box with everything else.

Taking a deep breath, he closed the lid and prepared to do something he never thought he'd do. Make a deal with a demon.

Orbing to a crossroads in a small town north of San Francisco, Chris dropped to his knees and started digging with his hands. As he worked, he couldn't help but think about what had brought him to this point.

 _Three days earlier . . ._

 _Sam Winchester had insisted they go inside to talk, so Chris had guided him up to the attic. It seemed appropriate given all serious magical discussions were held up in the musty space. It was the Halliwell equivalent of a War Room. Considering he'd known Sam and Dean since they'd bumped into each other in a cemetery when Chris was seventeen, he knew he could trust the hunter in the sacred place._

 _Once up in the attic, Sam had taken a seat on the sofa while Chris perched on the arm at the opposite end, facing toward him. The older man's brow was furrowed deeply, lips set in a serious line as he contemplated how to start. After a pause long enough to make Chris' leg start bouncing nervously, Sam finally said, "None of the options are good. I want to tell you that up front. Some of them are downright reckless."_

" _Sam, I don't care," Chris told him. "I can't let Lucky lose his mom."_

 _The hunter nodded and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "I get that, but I wouldn't be your friend if I didn't tell you these all carry terrible costs."_

" _Duly noted."_

 _Blowing out a huff of air from his nose first, Sam finally began, "Dean and I became experts on cheating Death over the years. It almost always ended badly, but the methods worked. There are certain faith healers, but most are frauds or using dark magic to get the job done. One we ran into was actually controlling a reaper."_

" _Reaper? Like an Angel of Death?" Chris asked._

" _Yes," Sam answered. "See, if there's no one to collect the soul it can't go anywhere. It's why another method we've used in the past was to destroy the reaper after whoever we wanted to save."_

 _Chris' eyebrows shot up. "You killed an Angel of Death? Sam, they're not evil. They're part of the grand design."_

" _I told you the methods were bad," Sam reminded him. "It's not something Dean and I are proud of either, but you asked for everything I knew."_

 _The witch shook his head. "I'm not killing an Angel of Death. My mother was one once. Not happening."_

 _Sam frowned looking thoroughly confused. "Piper was a . . .? " He shook his head, holding up his hand. "You know what? I don't need to know. Okay, well, if you don't want to tangle with a reaper then another method Dean used was a deal."_

" _A deal?"_

" _A crossroads deal to be specific," Sam said. "They're a demon with the power to grant wishes, but Chris, the usual going rate is one human soul."_

 _Chris grew pensive. After a moment he asked, "Usually? Meaning they may take something else?"_

" _It's possible," Sam replied hesitantly, "but not likely. If it's not a soul, it's usually something incredibly valuable to the Underworld as you call it. Meaning, they'd use it to try to hurt more people or do more damage."_

" _My Aunt Paige almost had her soul sold once," Chris mused. "She was able to get out of the contract. Is that what happened to Dean?"_

 _A shadow crossed the hunter's face. "No. He . . . he went to hell. If you make a deal, you can almost never break it. We got lucky that Dean was saved, and the person who did it . . ." Sam dropped his head, voice sad as he finished, "He's not around anymore."_

" _I'm sorry."_

 _Sam lifted his eyes to lock them firmly on Chris'. "You can save Casey, Chris, but I'm telling you it will not go down the way you hope. As painful as it is to tell your child their mother is gone the alternative may be worse. I would know. Just think about it."_

" _Chris?" Piper's voice called a few moments before she entered the attic. Her face was marred with worry as her brown eyes sought out her son's green. "I was going to bring out the cake, so Lucky could blow out his candles, but he seems to have left." She slid a look to Sam. "Mary and Dean are gone too."_

 _Sam frowned and rose from the sofa, crossing over to look out the window. The Impala was gone. He turned to find Chris looking furious. He smiled nervously at the witch. "Uh, maybe they just went for some air?"_

" _They're with Casey," Chris replied hotly. "I can sense them."_

 _The hunter shoved his hands in his pockets looking like he wanted to sink into the ground. "Chris, I am so sorry. I don't know what my brother was thinking. He should have checked with you first."_

" _Well, it's a little late for that now," Chris shot back. He shook his head muttering, "When Dean gets back I'm turning him into a toad with lots and lots of warts."_

As it turned out, Dean Winchester lived to see another day as a human. When Chris went to retrieve his son, Lucky was actually in better spirits, and Casey had been so happy to spend time with him Chris couldn't stay mad. It seemed Dean had known it was what they both needed. Though, Chris still had gotten a little revenge for the hunter taking his son without permission . . .

" _No, no, no!" Dean cried as he ran toward the Impala. Face contorted in horror he lovingly ran his hand along the roof. "Oh, baby, what's he done to you?"_

 _Dean's pride and joy, which he loved as though it were a living, breathing person, had been the target of Chris' revenge. The witch knew the hunter couldn't stand even a single change to his beloved car, so he'd done the unthinkable. He's used a spell to turn it bright pink._

 _Sam sucked in his lips to keep from laughing while Mary remarked through her laughter, "I like her better this way."_

 _Dean whirled on his niece, pointing a finger at her. "You take that back, Missy. RIght now."_

" _Gosh, Dean," Chris remarked from the stoop of the manor, arms crossed and a smug grin on his face. "Did someone mess with something you love? Maybe do something without asking you first?"_

 _The older hunter scowled at the young man. "Very funny, Witch Boy. Now, change her back."_

" _Not until I get an apology," Chris replied. As Dean pulled a face and started muttering something under his breath, the witchlighter goaded, "What's that? Pink is starting to grow on you?"_

 _As Sam finally couldn't contain a burst of laughter and Mary's grew louder, Dean edged them both a heated glare before turning back to Chris. Looking like he very much wanted to punch the witch and was struggling not to, he mumbled quickly, "I'm sorry."_

" _What was that?" Chris asked, putting a hand to his ear._

" _Dude, come on!" Dean cried, bobbing his head in frustration as he said it. "I'm sorry, okay? Now will you put my baby back to how she was?"_

 _Chris tilted his head in acceptance. "Undo the magic. Set it right. Return his car to the color of endless night."_

 _As the Impala shifted back to black, Dean ran over to it and threw his arms over the hood. He seemed completely oblivious as the other three started laughing hysterically._

Covering the box he'd just finished burying with dirt, Chris let out a sigh. If his plan worked, he wouldn't be able to ever do anything like that again. The loss would be worth it if it meant saving Casey though.

Rising from his knees, he expected a demon to appear but to his surprise orb lights cut through the darkness instead. Frowning, he was completely thrown when Perry materialized from the cloud of blue and white. He couldn't help asking, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," his twin replied. "I have news, but you weren't at home, so I sensed for you, and here we are." Perry frowned as he glanced around the area. "Uh, where is here exactly?"

Chris put his hands in his coat pockets, keeping an eye out for the demon he'd just summoned. "Now's not really the best time. . ."

"Are we standing at a crossroads?" Perry questioned, spinning in a circle as he checked the ground. When he was facing toward Chris again, he raised his head to shoot a disbelieving look at his brother. "Tell me you didn't do what I think you just did."

"Oh, but he most certainly did," a woman's voice interrupted.

Both men turned to find a stunning brunette standing in the road wearing a curve hugging, strapless black dress. Her ruby red lips were quirked up in a mocking smile as she regarded them with hands on her hips.

Perry shot a dark look to his twin. "You summoned a crossroads demon? Have you lost your mind?"

"You know about them?" Chris asked, shocked. When his twin merely raised his eyebrows, Chris realized it was a stupid question. "Right. Evil future. You know everything about every demon. Nevermind."

The demon sashayed seductively toward Chris, eyeing him up and down. When she was standing right in front him, she ran a finger up his chest and asked, "So, let me guess, you want me to save your son's mom? Fix up her busted lungs and kidneys?"

"Yes," Chris replied, struggling not to push her hand away, knowing he needed her to cooperate.

Perry shook his head, glaring at the demon. "He's not interested in your help. Go crawl back to whatever cave you came from." He grabbed his brother's arm intending to orb him away by force, but Chris shook him off. A frustrated growl rose in his throat. "Chris, this is insane. You're going to give Lucky his mom back by making him lose his dad? He'll never forgive you."

"I'm not offering my soul," Chris said to the demon as much as Perry.

The demoness pouted her plump red lips. She snapped her fingers and suddenly transformed to look exactly like Casey save for the cold, dead look in the normally warm brown eyes. "Not even for me? Don't you love me? Don't you want our son to have his mother?"

"Stop it," Chris barked. "I'm not playing this game. You can't have my soul, but I am willing to give you my powers."

Perry's head snapped around to look in horror at his twin. "Chris, no."

The demon with Casey's face looked intrigued. "Interesting. I have to say, I didn't see that coming."

"You're a Warren witch," Perry argued. "If evil got hold of your powers, do you have any idea the damage they could do? You'd be trading one life for hundreds. Not to mention your orbing. You'd put the entire heavens in danger."

"I don't care!" Chris snapped whirling on his sibling. Face contorted in anger he got into his twin's space. "You're not a father. You don't get it. You don't know what it feels like to watch your kid fall apart. To feel your heart break when theirs does. I'm not putting Lucky through that. Not when there's something I can do to stop it."

"I was Lucky!" Perry shot back. When he saw Chris' anger melt to confusion, he continued in a voice low enough the demon couldn't overhear, "In my timeline I watched Mom die. It was horrible. One of the most painful things I ever experienced, but I survived. He will too if it comes to it. Hopefully, it won't because I think I found a way to save her."

The demon called over, "I'm not going to wait all day boys."

Chris locked eyes with his twin. "You think, or you know?"

Perry looked hesitant. After a beat he answered, "I have a theory. In the past, I'll be honest, they didn't always pan out. Still, it beats making a deal with a demon, so please, Chris, let's go. Come back with me, and I'll tell you all about it."

"I'll make this real easy for you," the demon still wearing Casey's face cut-in. "Our side wants the little witch dead, so the pot would have to be a hell of a lot sweeter than your pathetic powers. The powers of The Twice Blessed? That may do the trick. Even the Elder here would be tempting. You? Not so much."

Perry frowned. "She's not a powerful witch. What difference does her death make to you?"

The demon's smile grew. "If you don't know, I'm certainly not telling." Her eyes slid to Chris, "Unless you can get one of your brothers to make a deal, looks like little Lucky will be losing mommy after all."

Chris clenched his hand into a fist and the demoness' eyes went wide as she was forced to her knees. Clawing at the invisible hand crushing her windpipe, she choked and gasped in panic. Chris' face remained neutral as he commented, "Guess I'm strong enough to vanquish you, though, huh?"

"Crossroads demons are possessor demons," Perry urgently told his brother.

Frustrated, Chris released his hold and the demon fell forward onto her hands and knees. "Get out of her body before I get the urge to see how rusty my latin is."

The demon burst out of the host's body in a swirl of black smoke. As soon as the demon was gone, the body returned to its original appearance, and a plain girl with dark hair was lying unconscious on the dirt road.

"After I figure out who she is and get her home," Perry said, gesturing to the innocent, "I'll meet you in the manor."

Chris said nothing before going up in a tornado of blue and white light. Frustrated, angry and not a little insulted, he appeared in the attic to immediately throw out his hand sending the small wooden table hurtling into the wall, splintering it beyond repair.

"Chris?"

The witchlighter turned to find Molly in the doorway looking worried. He couldn't hold her sweet hazel gaze, dropping his to the ground. A moment later he found himself enveloped in his fiancee's arms, the smell of her cinnamon conditioner acting like a soothing balm, easing away the storm of emotions he'd been swept away in. He held her tighter.

"What happened?" she softly asked.

"I tried to make a deal with a demon. My powers in exchange for Casey's life."

She pulled back to look up at him in horror. "You didn't."

"No. Perry stopped me," he answered miserably. "Well, that and I'm the runt of the litter. She wasn't interested in my powers."

Molly's hand palmed his face. "You're not the runt. I have a feeling they were bluffing. Trying to get more, but would have gladly taken your powers if it didn't work."

"Maybe." Chris took her hand, kissing the palm before dropping it to move over to the sofa. He sunk like a stone onto the lumpy cushion, putting his head in his hands. "Casey wants us to get married, you know. It's all she talks about when I visit now. Vehemently in both languages. I think she's trying to drive me insane."

Molly laughed lightly taking a seat next to him. "She's the one person who could do it."

Chris turned his head to look at her. "You know how much I love you, right? But getting married right now . . ." His eyes were getting suspiciously bright. "It feels wrong."

The whitelighter put her hand on his arm. "I know, but she's trying to get everything settled. She's scared."

"Settled? What do you mean?"

Molly started worrying her bottom lip, which after all these years Chris knew meant she was going to tell him something he didn't want to hear. "She wants us to get married, so I can adopt Lucky if . . ." She couldn't finish.

Chris' lips parted as all the air seemed to escape from his lungs at once. He couldn't think for a minute. The words, the implication of them, were lodged in his brain like a dam blocking all the processes. Finally, he struggled to ask, "She said that?"

She nodded. "She said Lucky would need a stable family unit if it happens. She practically begged me."

Chris took Molly's hand, squeezing it as he closed his eyes. Taking several shaky breaths, he opened his eyes again but wouldn't look at her. "If seeing us get married will ease her mind, then let's do it. Just a simple ceremony with family only. In the manor. No party. Just us getting married. This weekend."

"Are you sure?"

He edged a nervous look to her. "If you're okay with it."

Molly smiled softly. "Chris, if at the end of the day, I get to be your wife the rest doesn't matter to me."

"I love you so much," he told her, leaning in for a kiss.

As their lips met, Chris let himself drown in the embrace. What started innocently grew more intense quickly. Chris pulled her so close and tight against him, she could barely breathe. His mouth moved pleadingly over hers, silently asking for the comfort only she could provide.

Molly melted in his arms as she always did. She could deny him nothing and orbed them to his bed where they quickly became tangled limbs as clothes were practically ripped off and thrown to fall on the floor, lamp and even doorknob.

The experience was unlike any the two had ever shared together. Chris's hands and mouth moved over her body with a frenzy which she tried to return with steadfast love and comfort. Passionate and pleasurable as always, there was an edge of sadness to their lovemaking this time. When both had reached their peaks, Chris fell to his back next to her. He let out a deep, shaky breath, closing his eyes, and she could tell he was struggling with his emotions. After a minute, he turned to his side, back facing her, and went to sleep. It was the first time in their relationship he hadn't held her after sex.

Molly knew then the man she loved was a little broken, and a tear slipped silently down her face.

000

Perry was not looking forward to this conversation. He'd been avoiding Casey. Sure, he had a lot of research to do, and he'd been forced to stop his twin from selling either his soul or his powers to a demon a few days ago, but truth was, he was scared. Terrified of seeing his friend looking pale and weak. Watching her die all over again if she didn't agree to what he planned on proposing.

He'd meant to run the idea by Chris first, but when he'd gotten to the manor he'd discovered his twin was rather occupied with Molly. It was probably for the best. Chris wasn't exactly thinking clearly when it came to Casey. Besides, in the end, it was Casey's decision to make. One he really wasn't sure what side of the coin she'd land on.

Taking a deep breath to steel his nerves, Perry crossed the threshold into his friend's hospital room. She was sitting up in the bed flipping through the channels of the television. Instead of the thin, ugly gown he'd been expecting, she was wearing her street clothes - jeans and a black hooded sweatshirt. Her hair was clean and hanging in waves around her shoulders, and while pale, she actually looked almost normal.

Casey turned toward her friend, hearing his shoes on the tiles. While her face had started out looking excited it rapidly fell. She let out a huff, folding her arms over her chest. "Oh. You. My so-called friend."

Guilt stabbed his heart. He shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"I'm dying, Perry. How do you think I feel?" she retorted. "Not that you care. Apparently."

"I'm sorry, okay?" he tried. "This isn't easy for me - seeing you sick. I've watched a lot of people I love . . . I should have come. I know that, but it was easier to keep busy trying to find a solution. You know how much I care about you, though."

Casey chewed on the inside of her mouth as she regarded him. After a moment of tense silence she finally rolled her eyes and said, "Well, are you going to just stand there all day or are you going to sit and keep me company until my ride shows up?"

"Ride?" he asked as he crossed the room to sit by the bed.

"I'm breaking out," she answered. "Chris and Lucky are picking me up in a bit."

Perry frowned. "Is that a good idea? Leaving I mean."

"I have medicine to help me breathe. Dialysis three times a week to help my kidney function. They can't really do anything else, so there's no reason for me to stay."

The Elder narrowed his eyes noting the slight quiver in her tone, and the way her brown eyes weren't quite meeting his gaze. "What aren't you saying?"

"Nothing."

"You're a terrible liar."

Casey lowered her head, staring at her hands currently resting in her lap. "You can't tell Chris. He wouldn't take it well." When he didn't say anything she looked up to get non-verbal confirmation. When he shrugged and nodded, she told him, "The doctors think it'll happen soon. My lungs aren't functioning well, and I could have one collapse again any moment. My kidneys are pretty well shot. Even at the top of the transplant list they don't think I'll find a match in time. I only have days."

Instinctively, Perry took her hand, rubbing the back with his thumb. A horrible lump was in this throat and he couldn't seem to force any words around it.

"I'm trying really hard not to freak out," Casey admitted. "I'm trying to be strong and stay optimistic for Lucky but . . ." Her voice hitched. "I'm really scared."

As a few tears escaped down her face, Perry moved from the chair to sit on the edge of the bed, pulling her into a hug. He stroked her hair, closing his eyes against his own emotion. His lashes were still moist despite his best efforts. Voice thick, he told her, "It's okay. I have a plan. We're not losing you, okay?"

She pulled back to frown up at him. "Plan?"

"Yeah, but you may not like it," he warned her.

"Do I get to live and raise my son?" Off his nod, "Then I'm pretty sure I'll like it."

Perry nervously sucked in his lips, trying to figure out the best way to broach the idea. Finally, he said, "Have you heard about a potion the other Elders wanted Wyatt to make?" When she shook her head, he explained, "They knew the underworld wanted to interfere with your relationship, and they knew the only way to fight magic was with magic. Only, Wyatt wouldn't like it. Neither will you for that matter. Just, you two are meant to be together. It was foreseen. Arthur and Guinevere, but done right this time. After a crossroads demon told me-"

"-Crossroads demon?" Casey cut-in. " _Estás loco_? You do not make a deal with a demon, Perry. _Idiota_."

"I didn't," Perry defended. "I was stopping Chris." He winced as soon as the words were out, knowing what was coming.

" _Te estás burlando de mí?_ " came the shrill, angry question. "What is the matter with him? What about Lucky? How could he even consider doing something so incredibly stupid and reckless?"

"He's not handling this real well," Perry agreed. He locked his eyes on hers. "None of us are."

Casey's anger evaporated, and she sunk back into her pillows with a sigh. "Fine. So, what did the demon say?"

"They said you dying is worth more to them than Chris' powers, which no offense, I found strange," Perry said. "Compared to Chris you're not really much of a threat to them."

"You're not wrong," she conceded. "I'm mediocre on a good day. They should have jumped at the chance to get their hands on his powers. Orbing alone would be worth it."

Perry raised a hand to acknowledge her words. "Yes. Thank you. That's what I said. Anyway, I spoke to an Elder I actually trust, Kevin, and he told me the underworld's reason to want you dead is the same reason the Elders wanted to use the potion. He had a vision. If you live, you and Wyatt have a daughter . . . the reincarnation of Melinda Warren."

Casey shook her head. "That's not possible. Wyatt . . . he can't . . ." She frowned, a thought occurring to her. "He lied to Lucky. He took the blame."

Perry frowned not following at all. "Who lied about what?"

"When Lucky came to the past, he said Wyatt couldn't have children," Casey explained. "Only, I think it was me. I think I was so sick we couldn't, but Wyatt would never blame me, so he told Lucky it was his fault. In that original timeline Wyatt and I were married young and had been trying for years."

Looking nervous and hesitant, Perry asked, "Can I ask something really personal?"

Casey smiled knowingly. "Why were we married in his future when I'm so against the idea now?" Off his nod, "A demon named Zayel changed our past. He made Wyatt cheat on me using a potion. I walked in on him with a girl who hated me and was working with the demon. They were literally in the throes. Shortly after, I started bleeding and nearly lost Lucky. Logically, I know I had a medical condition, and one event had nothing to do with the other, but . . ."

"You blamed him," Perry realized.

"Growing up, Wyatt was the one I went to when I was upset. I cried on his shoulder about Chris more times than I can count, and I didn't know this at the time, but it hurt him so much. He did it anyway. He was always there for me no matter what. I trusted him more than anyone. He was my rock. Then that happened and I just . . . I didn't see him the same way anymore."

"It wasn't his fault, though. Anymore than you were to blame for our sleeping together."

Casey dropped her eyes back to her hands. "It's strange but being the one on the other side - the one to cheat because of magic - has actually fixed some of the damage. I understand what he went through better. I have been terrified of losing him. Of him finding out and not being able to forgive me." She looked back up to Perry eyes shining. "I was going to tell him the truth, but I don't want to die with him hating me."

"I don't think he would," Perry reasoned, "but if you don't want to tell him about us until you're better we won't."

"Until I'm better," Casey repeated dubiously. "You mentioned a plan to make that happen?"

Perry nodded, face serious. "I need to know - Do you want to spend the rest of your life with Wyatt?"

Without hesitation, she replied, "However long I have."

"Good," Perry said, "because the potion the Elders wanted you to take is a soul binding potion. They wanted you to take it so your love would become untouchable by magic. Only, there's an interesting side effect: It will literally bind your souls, so when you die, your spirit will linger between life and death waiting for Wyatt's. While seriously against the rules, Wyatt could orb to the spirit realm and heal you where the Elders can't interfere."

Casey's lips parted in shock as she took in the information. "Soul binding. As in all eternity. Forever."

Perry nodded. "It's big I know."

"I've only very recently come to the realization I wanted to marry Wyatt, and you're asking me to bind my soul to his for all of time?" She leaned her head back against the headrest. " _Ay Dios mío._ "

Perry took her hand again catching her eyes with his. "You love him. He loves you. All this potion does is strengthen that bond. Cement it. It isn't going to change who you are or make you do anything you don't want to do. It will save your life though."

"Wyatt takes his magic very seriously," Casey argued, "he'd never break a rule like that. When the other elders find out they could strip his powers. I'm not stupid Perry. I heard the story about your parents too. Your dad healed your mother in the spirit realm when she got ill, and it cost him his wings."

"Wyatt's the Twice Blessed. They wouldn't dare, and you know it."

Casey chewed on the inside of her mouth. Seeing Perry's determination, remembering how frantic and scared Chris had been lately, thinking about how she could watch her son grow up and be with Wyatt, the decision was made. She let out a breath. " _Bueno._ I'm in. Bind me to Wyatt."

000

Wyatt Halliwell felt like the world's biggest idiot. He had no idea what had come over him the last time he'd visited Casey. He'd been so consumed with jealousy he'd stormed off without even saying goodbye. The anger and hurt had swallowed him so quickly it surprised him. He'd never thought of himself as being a particularly possessive or jealous person, but thinking about Casey wanting Perry . . . it made his blood boil.

After leaving her side, he'd gone to the Underworld to blow off steam then returned to his apartment still feeling on edge. Drinking was always Chris' way of coping, but alcohol did nothing for Wyatt. Never had. He opted for his father's method of settling down. Meditating to recenter then eating a piece of toast. Chewing on his toast that night, he'd come to the realization he'd temporarily lost his mind. Casey loved him. Period. It was just one stupid kiss, and if he didn't let it go he'd push her away.

He'd meant to go see her the next day, but the goblins had launched an attack on the fairies, and Thistle had requested his assistance in settling the fight and renegotiating the treaty between the often warring creatures. It had consumed a lot of his time. P3 and Magic School also demanded his attention and before he knew it, days had gone by without seeing Casey, and the guilt over their fight had only grown worse, turning his stomach to knots.

It was why he'd stopped to pick up a bouquet of red roses as way of apology. Carrying his romantic gesture in both hands, he walked through the hospital toward her room only to pause around the corner of the door as he spotted Perry already inside.

He didn't see Bianca standing around the corner. The Pheonix whispered, "Make him see what is not there, his greatest pain come to bear. Twist the words he will hear to bring to life his greatest fear."

Wyatt was going to enter when Casey's voice paused him. "I walked in on him with a girl I loathed, who hated me and was working with the demon. They were literally in the throes. Shortly after, I started bleeding and nearly lost Lucky because of him."

The Twice Blessed closed his eyes, old guilt and pain flaring painfully. The memory of that night still haunted him. He'd nearly lost the love of his life, his nephew and his brother all in one foul swoop.

Perry pushed the hair back behind her ear, caressing her cheek with his fingers. "You still blame him."

"When that happened, I knew I would never see him the same way anymore."

It was a suspicion Wyatt had held for a long time. Every time they started to move forward in their relationship, she pulled back again. She was scared of being hurt again, and he'd known that, but to hear it voiced aloud hurt, and he put his head back against the wall as the painful guilt hit him hard.

Perry's voice, silky and seductive commented, "It was why we started sleeping together."

Wyatt felt his heart stop. His lungs froze in a painful squeeze, which wouldn't allow air in or out. He peered into the room, eyes already stinging as he saw them together. Desperately, he pleaded under his breath, "No. Say it's not true. Please, Casey. Please, don't let it be true. Please."

"It's strange but being the one on the other side - the one to cheat - has actually been incredibly exciting." She eyed Perry seductively. "I was going to tell him the truth, but I don't want to."

Then, she pulled Perry to her and their lips locked, mouths moving in a passionate dance. Perry's hands caressed the sides of her chest before slipping around her back. Her hands tangled in his brother's hair as she let out a moan.

Wyatt's heart broke, snapped into bloody pieces he knew could never be put back together. He couldn't pull his eyes away even as they grew increasingly blurry. His arms fell numbly to his sides, and the roses slipped from his hand falling to the floor.

Bianca watched as the Twice Blessed Witch crumbled. Her lips quirked up in a smug smile of satisfaction. She was just getting started. By the time she was done with him, Wyatt Halliwell would either want to die or kill. Either way, evil would win. She would win. She'd be the one to finally bring an end to the most powerful good magic.

The Halliwell family would not survive this.

TBC . . .


	28. The Darkest Side of Me

Firstly, thanks a million to sise87, gabyhyatt, and Anthony for your reviews. You guys really make the work I put into this story worth it. :D

Secondly, sorry this took a bit longer than usual to get posted. The holidays snuck up on me, and I wound up in a whirlwind of preparation. Hopefully, this was worth the wait. Things are amping up!

Chapter 28

Chris couldn't help but have an irremovable smile after he informed Casey her incessant pleading had paid off, and the woman had hugged him so hard he thought she'd break his ribs. Even confined to a wheelchair and portable oxygen, the latina had been contagiously excited, talking as much and as fast as her poor lungs would allow her about food and decorations and how Chris was going to cry at how beautiful the bride was going to be coming down the aisle in her dress. If he could make her happy, give her something to look forward to, Chris would've done anything. The fact all she wanted was to see him marry the woman he loved just made him realize again how much he loved his friend.

Lucky, who had been with at the time, responded, "Cool." Then he immediately returned to his video game. After a pause, he couldn't help but tease his father, "You're not making the cake, right, Dad?"

Casey had given a wheezy laugh and high fived their son, who looked beyond proud of himself for making his mother laugh. Chris couldn't even be upset or insulted. He just cherished the moment.

Getting his friend settled and dropping Lucky off with his Dad, who was taking his only grandson to a baseball game that afternoon, Chris orbed over to his brothers' apartment to share the new plans for the wedding.

When he materialized in the living room of Wyatt's apartment, Chris spotted Perry over at the stove with a large pot. Whatever he was making smelled divine. It was warm and spicy like cinnamon and nutmeg with a little clove. The aroma reminded Chris of warm apple pie or hot cider, and for some reason, he instantly felt warm and happy.

"Hey," Perry greeted without turning around.

The voice snapped him from his strangely pleasurable fog, and Chris moved toward his brother to investigate what his sibling was preparing. "Hey back. I thought you said you can't cook."

"Can't. Not even a little."

Chris shot him a disbelieving look. He gestured to the pot. "Smells to me like you can."

Perry smirked holding up a ladle revealing a baby blue liquid. "Potion."

"Seriously?" Chris snatched the ladle examining the liquid with a frown. He sniffed it a few times and was hit with the same comforting scents as before. Only this time the warmth he felt was stronger, flushing his cheeks and making the palms of his hands hot. His heart started beating faster, and an image of Molly instantly sprang to mind.

Perry took the ladle back, resting it in the pot and grabbed his twin's arm as the other man swayed slightly on his feet. "You okay there?" When Chris nodded, his brother went on, "Should have warned you. This potion is seriously potent. Actually, it was a real bitch to make. The ingredients took forever to find, and that's coming from someone who once had to track down a Kotochul Egg for an empathy blocking potion. Anyway, even just smelling this potion has a distinct effect. Let me guess, you suddenly have a really strong urge to see your bride to be, right?"

"Overwhelming," he concurred. He eyed the potion warily, unnerved by it. "Why does it smell like apple pie, and why can I suddenly not get Molly out of my head? What kind of a potion can do that?"

His twin looked thoughtful. "It smells like apple pie to you?"

"Yeah, though, I hardly think that's the important part."

"Might be," Perry disagreed. "Does Molly make you think of apple pies or smell like them?"

Chris blinked. After several beats he finally answered, "She uses an apple scented body wash. Her hair always smells like cinnamon from her conditioner."

The Elder's expression became shuttered, his eyes growing distant as he clearly became lost in thought.

"What? Why does the potion smell like Molly and make me think of her?"

"I think it tries to indicate your soulmate," Perry replied, his gaze falling on the pot. "Since Molly is your perfect match, it's reminding you of her."

"Soulmate?" Chris repeated incredulously. "You made a potion to find your soulmate?"

Perry rolled his eyes. "No. I made a potion to bind souls together."

"You say that like it's somehow better."

"It's for Casey," Perry answered.

Chris' eyebrows shot up. "Okay, getting worse."

His twin glanced up at the ceiling, looking like he was listening for something. He set his jaw in irritation, shaking his head. "They're listening."

"Who?"

Perry gave him a look like he was stupid. "The Elders, Chris. The Elders are listening."

"Why? What is going on?"

The Elder went to the drawer, grabbing out a pad and pen. He quickly scribbled out his plan to save their friend, explaining how it was very much against the rules, and if _They_ found out everyone could get in a lot of trouble for being part of it. He then patiently waited for his sibling to read it.

As Chris read, his mouth fell open, and he started shaking his head. Finished, he looked up at his twin with disbelief. "I can't believe you came up with this. I mean I can. It's just . . . will it really work?"

"Pretty sure."

Chris let out a long steady breath, running his hand through his shaggy hair. "I don't know. I mean, Casey is the Queen of Commitment Issues. I don't see her going along with this."

"She's already agreed."

Chris did a double take. "You're joking. The woman who is petrified of marriage is willing to do _that_?"

Perry shrugged. "Got me. Maybe the whole imminent death thing has given her an epiphany. Based on our talk, given the chance, I think she'd marry Wyatt in a heartbeat now."

"Wow," Chris breathed. "That's . . . wow."

The Elder had turned back to the pot and started ladling the liquid into two vials. Chris didn't fail to notice his twin was holding his breath as he transferred the potion.

"Must be hard for you," Chris commented, sympathetically.

Perry physically jerked looking nervous as his eyes went wide. "What? No. I'm fine with it."

Chris frowned at the reaction and the words. Something was off with his twin. "I meant with Bianca being evil at the moment. That's why you're holding your breath, right? Hard to be reminded of her when she's not the woman you love in this timeline."

"Right," Perry breathed, relaxing. "That's exactly it. Yeah."

Not believing him in the slightest, Chris pointedly asked, "Or did you think I was talking about Casey and Wyatt?"

Perry winced. He quickly explained, "It's not what you think."

Chris folded his arms giving him a less than pleased look. "Really because it looks like you're jealous, which has me pretty concerned considering this whole plan hinges on those two being together."

"I want them together as much as everyone else," Perry affirmed. "They belong together. I don't love Casey like that anymore, I swear. I love Bianca, and I want to figure out how to save her, so we can be together. Only . . ."

"Only?" Chris drew out.

"I . . . I smelled mango," Perry answered looking miserable. "The potion makes me smell mango, and I have no idea why."

Chris' face fell as he commented numbly, "Case smells like mango. Always has. If you smell her, does that mean . . .?"

"I don't know." Perry replied, shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders. "It's not all the time. As I was making it, I got a clean smell like plain soap and water, which is all Bianca. Had an urge to hunt her down and make things right that very instant, but then a few minutes later . . ."

"Mango," Chris finished.

Perry nodded.

"How is that possible? Why would the potion give you different indicators?"

"I have no idea." Perry let out a breath. "It doesn't matter. It's not like I'm going to take it."

Chris felt a knot twisting in his stomach at the words, but he wasn't sure why. His twin looked worried, guilty and utterly miserable just by talking about the potion implying he was in some way meant to be with Casey. It was clear Perry would never act on the information. He wanted Casey and Wyatt together too. So it was irrelevant, right?

"Maybe it's because you were making it for her?" Chris offered. "You were thinking about her, so it pulled your old feelings out?"

Perry cocked his head to the side, considering it. After a few minutes he conceded, "It's possible, I guess. I mean, it would make a helluva lot more sense than the other option."

"See. There you go," Chris said, smiling encouragingly despite the unsettled feeling still in his gut.

Obviously wanting to change the subject, Perry said, "Anyway, you must have come here for a reason. Did you need something?"

Chris shoved his hands in his pockets, a genuine smile finally forming as he thought about the news he came to share. "Actually, yeah, I did. I'm getting married tomorrow. Molly and I decided to move up the date since it's important to Casey to see us get married, and we figured maybe something to celebrate would help her feel better."

Perry's eyebrows shot up. "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Chris acknowledged, "but we don't need much. Molly is technically dead, so it's not like we can have a conventional ceremony anyway. Which is actually where I'm hoping you come in."

"Me?"

Chris gave a one-shouldered shrug. "Well, yeah. Since we can't exactly get a marriage license I was hoping you would perform a handfasting for us. Sunset."

Perry's mouth opened slightly in surprise before a small smile formed. "You want me to do it? Really?"

"Who better to bless our union than an Elder who also happens to be my brother?" Chris replied with a grin.

Perry looked a bit nervous. "I've never actually done anything like this before. I've seen a few, but . . . don't you want someone with experience? Like Great Grams?"

"I definitely don't want Great Grams," Chris replied. "She and I tend to butt heads."

Perry laughed. "Know the feeling. When I was in the past, she actually called me a greenhorn."

"Ouch."

"Right?"

Chris put his hand on his twin's arm. "Listen, it would really mean a lot to me if you did it. That way both my brothers are part of the ceremony. Wyatt will be the best man, and you can officiate. Besides, if you have questions, I know Dad used to do these ceremonies back when he was an Elder. You could always brush up on the finer points with him. So, please, will you?"

The Elder gave a wide smile. "Absolutely."

"Great," Chris said, an identical smile on his face. "Now, I just have to track down the best man, and everything will be set for a perfect wedding."

000

Wyatt felt numb. Sitting atop the Golden Gate Bridge, he watched as dark clouds rolled in, lightning flashing in their bellies. He vaguely wondered if it was really the best idea to be sitting on a giant metal bridge in a lightning storm. After a while, he concluded his magic shield would probably protect him anyway. After all, he was the most powerful witch to have ever lived. He was invincible. Nothing could hurt him, right?

Except the pain he'd been feeling for the last few hours had been far worse than any darklighter arrow, energy ball or fireball he'd ever experienced. It felt like his heart had exploded. First, there was incomparable agony accompanied by the deepest sorrow and sense of betrayal he'd ever known. Then, it was like the space where his heart had been transformed into a black hole sucking in every single emotion until he simply couldn't feel anything anymore. His chest had a vast hole of nothingness leaving him empty inside.

The woman he loved was having an affair with his brother, and the fact killed him a little each time his mind thought the words. Casey was sleeping with Perry. Insert knife directly into back and twist.

How could she do this to him? He thought she loved him. All these years he thought they'd been happy together. Sure there were ups and downs, but overall, he truly believed they were both happy and completely, unquestionably in love. Meant to be.

It didn't make sense. It didn't fit with all the wonderful, loving memories he had. Times like when Casey had surprised him in his apartment with a big romantic evening. She'd made his favorite meal and dessert and decorated his apartment with candles everywhere. Despite not liking such get-ups (as she called them), she even wore a silky red negligee just because she knew he found it to be a huge turn-on. The whole evening was like his best fantasy come to life.

Then there was the time he'd gotten the flu, and she played nursemaid for a whole weekend. She had dabbed his neck with a cool wet cloth while rubbing circles on his back with her other hand as he vomited for the umpteenth time. She stayed in bed with him, singing softly until he drifted off. When he was feeling a little better, she'd made him the most amazing chicken noodle soup.

A few years ago, she'd jumped in front of him during a vanquish to stop him from getting hit with a darklighter arrow. When he'd asked why she didn't just freeze it instead, she'd said she hadn't seen it coming until it was right there, and she was worried freezing it would take too long. She'd been too scared to think straight at the idea of him being hurt.

Those were just a few instances in a lifetime of similar acts of love. How could they mean nothing? How could he have been so incredibly wrong about the woman he loved? There had to be an explanation. There just had to be.

Maybe Perry had done something to her? His new brother obviously had feelings for her, and based on what Wyatt knew of his past, the guy wasn't above using his magic to accomplish his goals. He'd done some incredibly questionable things in his quest to save the future. Maybe he'd crossed the line one too many times, and Perry couldn't really distinguish between right and wrong anymore?

A shimmer in the air drew Wyatt's attention. He rose to his feet ready to defend himself. He frowned as he saw who'd come calling. "Bianca?"

"Hey," she greeted smugly, "I see you've learned the truth about our so-called loves. Hurts, doesn't it?"

Not trusting her, Wyatt shrugged, playing it off. "Not sure what you mean."

The Phoenix smiled, tilting her head slightly. It made her look condescending, and he wasn't sure if it was on purpose or not. "Oh, but I think you do. Unless you are really so naïve as to not see what's right in front of you. Perhaps, I should cast a spell to show you the whole, ugly truth."

"Like I would ever trust you," Wyatt replied lowly.

She handed him a slip of a paper. "Then you do it."

Reading over the spell it was clear-cut and not likely to backfire. As long as he was the one who casted it, the spell should be legitimate. Still, did he really want to know how the affair had happened? Right now, he was almost inclined to forget it ever had. Truthfully, he wasn't sure he could ever forgive or trust Perry again, considering the man seemed to be programmed to be his enemy in every timeline regardless of whether Wyatt was evil or not. Casey on the other hand? Part of him wanted to try to work things out with her as long as she promised it was over. Did that make him a complete idiot?

"What?" Bianca goaded, "afraid of what you may find?"

Terrified. He was literally terrified. "What does it matter to you?"

"Perry made a fool of me, making me believe he really loved me," she replied. "I want to see him get what's coming to him. I don't have the power, but you . . ."

"I already know they were sleeping together," Wyatt commented sadly. "What's left to know?"

Bianca tossed her hair over her shoulder as she gave a non-committed shrug. "Only one way to find out since you don't believe me."

As much as he was loath to do anything a dark witch suggested, Wyatt had to know the truth. If those two had lied about an affair, had they been keeping anything else from him? Taking a breath he read aloud, "Moments past I long to see, come to me who summons thee. Clear the doubt in my mind, the truth is what I hope to find."

Wyatt's mind filled with an image of the attic. Casey was wearing some strange leather outfit she would normally never be caught dead wearing. Perry was standing in front of her, an intense look on his face.

". . . I can't give up on us," his brother was saying. "I wasn't the one to hurt you. You have to see he's not me. Look in my eyes and tell me if you see him there."

Casey's hand went to her chest as the words clearly affected her. Then, she threw herself into Perry's arms, her hands burying themselves in his silky hair as she kissed him passionately. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight against his chest, returning the embrace with equal fervor.

Wyatt felt his heart constrict just as the image shifted.

Perry and Casey were standing in P3 now. From what Wyatt could tell they were in the back office. It looked different than how Wyatt had decorated it, so he assumed this must have happened when they were in the past together.

Casey looked miserable as she shook her head. " _Mierda_. I'm so confused. I thought I was over you. I thought I didn't have those feelings for you anymore, but then I get here, and you're you, but you're not you at the same time. You're stronger and calmer and you actually want me. God, why couldn't this be six years ago? Why? Do you have any idea how much I wanted this then? But now . . . now, it's too late. It has to be too late."

Wyatt felt a glimmer of hope. She was telling him it was too late. Even though it hurt to hear her wishing Chris had wanted her all those years ago, it wasn't anything he hadn't known at the time. At least she was telling Perry no now.

"Why does it have to be too late?" Perry asked, brushing her tear dampened hair from her face, cupping her small face with his hands.

Wyatt glared at him. "Because she's with me. Stop touching her."

Perry clearly didn't hear or see him as he was just a memory. Instead, he said, "Maybe this happened for a reason, Casey. Everything in my family does."

"No," Wyatt argued. "Not this. Not betrayal."

Casey moved her hands to the sides of Perry's face, slowly lowering his lips to hers. Deepening the kiss, her hands slid down his neck to his chest, and she lightly pushed him backwards so he stumbled, ending up sitting on the cot. Then, she slowly, deliberately straddled him and their eyes locked.

Wyatt shook his head watching in horror. He knew what was coming. The look in her eyes was one she'd directed at him many times in their relationship. He could feel it as his gut twist painfully. His heart and lungs felt frozen in painful cold. He didn't want to see this. He couldn't bear it.

"Casey?" Perry questioned, sounding like he was double checking she wanted this.

"Stop," Wyatt quietly pled. "Tell him you can't. Please."

Instead, the woman claimed his brother's mouth, her tongue teasing his upper lip before delving deeper. Her hands deftly unbuttoned his rust-colored dress shirt, sliding it off his shoulders and discarding the garment onto the floor before running her fingernails over the firm chest she'd exposed.

"No, please, stop," Wyatt begged. "End the magic. So mote it be."

Nothing happened.

Perry let out a moan of pleasure before pulling her shirt over her head and flipping her onto her back on the bed, so he was on top. His lustful eyes raked over her, enjoying the view for a moment before she pulled him back down for another passionate kiss.

His mouth moved to tease her throat next and he smiled through his kisses as she sucked in a sharp breath in response.

"No, no, no," Wyatt squeezed his eyes shut. That was his spot. He was the one who knew her sensitive neck. He was the one who should be teasing it. Not anyone else. Especially not his own brother.

He heard the clang of a metal belt buckle hitting the floor. A whimper of pleasure from Casey followed by a gasp of anticipation from Perry. The cot squeaked repeatedly. Wyatt wasn't sure if he wanted to scream or cry.

"End the spell," Wyatt pleaded, "remove me from my own worst hell."

Nothing happened. The magic had to run its course. He couldn't stop it, so he was forced to be present as his brother made love to his girlfriend. Despite having his eyes squeezed tightly shut, he could still picture what was going on, could hear every heart wrenching moment. It wasn't until they had finished, the image finally shifted again.

When he heard music playing loudly all around him, Wyatt dared to open his eyes and found himself in P3 again but in the present. Wyatt remembered this moment. He'd been there. It was the night all of them had gone out together.

Perry had just run smack into another patron, drinks clattering loudly to the floor. "I'm so sorry," Perry mumbled to Wyatt's past self. He gestured to the broken glasses. "I'm such a klutz."

"Don't worry about it," Wyatt's past self waved him off. "Happens all the time." He looked over to the bar. "Hey, Chloe, can I get the broom?" He returned a reassuring smile to Perry. "I've got this. Really not a big deal. I promise."

"Thanks, Man," Perry responded, smiling back.

When Wyatt's past self had taken off to take care of the mess, Wyatt of the present watched Perry immediately head to Casey. His eyes were flashing darkly, his voice steely and low. "Tell me you weren't pregnant with my brother's child when we . . ."

Wyatt shook his head, floored. Perry really was a masterful manipulator. He had knocked into that other person on purpose to get Wyatt to leave, so he could interrogate Casey.

Meanwhile, Casey looked furious with Perry. "Screw you. No. I _wasn't_ pregnant."

Wyatt sucked in a sharp breath. Oh god. She had thought she was pregnant with his brother's child. Again. The Twice Blessed couldn't take any more. It was too much. It was all way too much. Thankfully, it was at that moment the spell ended, and he found himself standing on the bridge with Bianca again.

"Have fun?" she asked dryly.

Wyatt couldn't speak. His mind was spinning. Betrayed didn't cover it. Not only had they had an affair, but Casey had thought herself pregnant with Perry's baby. When they got back from P3 to his apartment, she'd been acting so strangely. When they'd made love it had felt different to him. Wyatt had passed it off as being due to a long separation, but there was obviously more to it. Guilt maybe? Or maybe . . . Oh god, she wouldn't, would she? Had she wanted to try to pass off the baby as his? Had she been playing on his desire to have a child with her to cover her cheating? Had she been playing him?

Wyatt felt sick.

"I don't know about you," Bianca said, "but I could do with a little revenge."

Wyatt looked up, eyes brimming with tears of anger and hurt. He didn't notice the third party come onto the bridge. Didn't sense the other magical presence.

 _They played you. They betrayed your trust and treated you like a fool. They deserve to be punished._

The Twice Blessed met her gaze and asked coolly, "What did you have in mind?"

Bianca smirked. "Play the game. Don't let on you know the truth. Then, when the opportune moment arrives, shatter her just like she did you. Then, make Perry suffer for taking what was yours. Show him no one can get away with making a fool of The Twice Blessed."

 _He thinks he's better than you. He beat you once in his world. Don't let him defeat you again. Make Perry Halliwell pay for betraying you. Make them all pay._

"I don't know . . ." Wyatt hedged. He felt strange. Like some darkness was creeping in on him, clouding his thoughts. Perhaps, he was just that hurt. It was excruciating. Still, he never imagined himself capable of having these thoughts before. So dark and hateful.

Bianca ran the back of her fingers over his jaw before sliding her hand seductively over his chest. "Your own brother betrayed you. The woman you gave your heart to has been manipulating you, probably just using you for your power and prestige. A so-called good witch hurt you deeply."

Wyatt frowned at her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm just saying good and evil may not be as black and white as you thought," she said. "After all, I'm evil, but I'm the only one willing to help show you truth. The only one who has never lied to you."

"No, that's not true," he argued.

Bianca had that condescending look again. "I know the little whitelighter, Molly, knew about their affair. She was there when your girlfriend was finding out whether or not she was carrying your brother's child. Molly didn't say a word to you, though, did she?"

"Molly knew?" Wyatt breathed. It made sense. Casey told her everything. Plus, Molly had known about the illness when no one else did, which was likely because the pregnancy test came back negative, and they needed a new explanation for the symptoms. It fit. Yet another betrayal it seemed.

Bianca went on, "If Molly knew, do you really think she'd keep something like that from Chris?"

No. He didn't. Molly and Chris shared everything. It meant his other brother had known and said nothing either. How could he? How could he let Wyatt go on like a blind fool? Let the others keep going around behind his back?

 _Chris chose Perry over you. Chose the woman over you. Your own brother lied to you for them._ _Anything to protect the slut he knocked up in high school._

Wyatt clenched his hands and rage filled his veins. It was too much. Seeing Casey and Perry together, being trapped as they fooled around in the back room of the club he now owned. Hearing them talk about her possibly being pregnant. Thinking about how she'd probably wanted to dupe Wyatt into thinking it was his. Molly and Chris both covering for them.

 _Hate them. Punish them. Make them suffer the humiliation and anguish you feel now._

Damn them all. The Twice Blessed would show them he was not someone to toy with. He would pay them all back for their betrayal.

000

Chris had intended to go the bridge where he felt Wyatt's presence, but for some reason, he wound up in the back room of P3 instead. He had no idea how he'd gotten there. It was almost like someone had scattered his orbs, but he knew Perry hadn't done it, so how had he missed his target so badly?

He frowned, glancing around the bar with an uneasy feeling. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end as though he were being watched. "Hello? Is someone here?"

"Sorry to hijack your orbs," a voice commented from the shadows. "I know you always hated when I do that, but it's an emergency."

His heart paused as he registered that voice. He hadn't heard it sound like that in almost seven years, but he would recognize the voice anywhere. Eyes wide and mouth falling open slightly, Chris took a few steps toward the person obscured in shadow. "Lucky?"

A young man of about sixteen stepped out of the dark. His brown hair was hanging into striking jade eyes. When he smiled weakly, it still looked just like his mother's except for the large burn mark scarring the left side of his face. "Hey, Dad. We need to talk."

TBC . . .


	29. Ironic

Thank you so much to Anthony, sise87 and Kiara for your reviews! Your continued support means a lot to me :)

Chapter 29

Seeing the future version of his son step out of the shadows, Chris Halliwell felt his heart twinge. The young man standing before him was not the same cocky kid he'd met seven years ago. The Lucky he had met back when he was still a teenager himself had been surly with a touch of sorrow, but he was relaxed and confident. The young man before him now held himself in tense readiness like at any moment he'd be under attack. His green eyes were constantly darting around the space checking for threats. Those eyes looked haunted and hard. They reminded Chris of Perry. Everything about his son did right now, and it scared him.

Chris couldn't stop staring at the large, angry red scar on his child's face. He'd been badly burned. Why hadn't someone healed him? His voice came out shaky as he asked, "Lucky, what happened?"

"Isn't it obvious?" his son asked sardonically. "In my future, evil is winning."

The young father did a double take, not believing his ears. "What? No. That's not possible. We would never let that happen."

" _Sí, claro,"_ Lucky sarcastically retorted. "I'm just time hopping for kicks. The wicked scar covering half my face is a fashion statement."

Chris blanched at the hostility. He moved closer to his son, trying to catch hold of the boy's arms, but Lucky reacted in a flash, his hands stopping his father's by knocking them down. It was obvious the young man had combat training to block like that. The fact he had saddened his father and that he'd used it to avoid being comforted made Chris' heart break.

"What happened to you?" Chris tried again. "Why weren't you healed?"

Lucky let out a huff. "It's cursed magic. Blocks whitelighters' healing touch. New invention for a new Source."

The young father felt his stomach drop. "New Source?"

Lucky's eyes flashed black for a moment, and he winced in pain. A moment later his eyes returned to their usual sage hue, his face going neutral.

"What was that?" Chris asked, worried.

Lucky scrubbed his hand over his face. He replied tiredly, "Nothing you need to worry about."

"Your eyes were black," his father argued. "I'd say that's something I need to worry a helluva lot about."

The teenager rolled his eyes at him. After a few beats, he said, "It's my destiny. You don't need to be scared. It doesn't normally hurt, but the time travel confuses it. It's why I can't stay long."

"Confuses _it_?"

"I guess it won't hurt to tell you since it's a fixed point in time," Lucky relented. "Not to mention I know you won't let it go, and I don't have time to fight with you."

Chris felt his stomach knot. He had a feeling whatever he was about to learn, he wasn't going to like. Especially since the look on Lucky's face reminded him strongly of Casey right after she'd made a decision she knew Chris wouldn't approve of.

His son took a deep breath, exhaling in a slow stream, running a hand through his too long hair. It was clear he was trying to figure out how to start. Finally, he asked, "Do you know what the original Galahad's greatest feat was?"

"Sitting in the siege perilous?"

"That was cool too," Lucky acknowledged with the first glimmer of a grin. It faded quickly. "But no. He found the Holy Grail. Thing is people didn't really know what that meant. The mythology got mixed up with the Christian Holy Grail, but it is not a cup with magic powers. It's infinite magic power. The wiccan holy grail if you will."

Chris frowned, not understanding. "Wiccan . . . I don't . . . what . . ." His mind was processing while he spoke until he realized what his son was alluding to. Horror filled him. "The Hollow. You absorbed the Hollow?"

"I'm meant to be it's protector," Lucky replied. "In my future, absorbing it was the only option, though. It was under attack, and the person after it . . . well, let's just say if they got it, the world would basically end, so yeah, I absorbed it. I'm fine. It's fine. Can we move on now?"

"Move on?" Chris repeated, voice rising in pitch. "You drop a bomb on me that you're The Guardian of _the_ Hollow, and you insanely decided to harness it all inside of yourself, and you want me to just move on? I swear I am grounding you forever. Starting now. You are completely and totally grounded. Clearly, you can't make good decisions, so grounded for life, Mister."

Lucky rolled his eyes again. "That's going to be pretty hard to enforce since you're dead."

Chris blinked. "I'm what now?"

His son's face softened. "You died. Were murdered actually."

"You don't seem particularly upset by that fact," Chris found himself saying. He felt a bit numb. His filter wasn't functioning. "Was I such a terrible father to you?"

Lucky looked horrified. "No. Dad, no. You were amazing. It's just I have about three different timelines running in my head right now, so it's not always real for me. Part of the deal with being The Guardian of The Hollow is changes to the timeline don't seem to affect me. That's why time hopping right now hurts so damn much. It's like I have twice as much of The Hollow in me, and it burns like _un hijo de puta_."

Chris didn't speak spanish, but he'd known Casey long enough to recognize a curse when he heard one. He fought the urge to tell his son to watch his mouth. Instead, he asked, "So I'm alive in some of those other timelines? My death isn't a fixed point in the timeline?"

"No," Lucky confirmed. "This is the first time it's happened." He put his hands out to stop his father from asking a follow-up question. "Listen. Dad. I love you, but you need to let me get out what I came to tell you. I don't have a lot of time to explain, and it's complicated as all fuck."

Chris' eyebrows shot up. He couldn't resist this time. "Language, Lucas."

" _Siento_ ," came the automatic reply.

"Now, start at the beginning."

Lucky gestured for his father to take a seat on one of the stools. He then straddled the one next to Chris. The teenager's hands played nervously with the top edge of his seat. The leather had come loose, and he pulled on it trying to clear his head enough to get things straight. Finally, he said, "I screwed up. Everything happening right now is my fault."

"Lucky-"

"-No," his son's head shot up, eyes dark. "Don't interrupt. It's hard enough. Just let me say it."

"Okay."

Lucky wet his lips, turning his head away from Chris. He swallowed thickly. "In the first timeline I remember, Mom and Uncle Wyatt got married when Mom turned eighteen. They started trying for kids right after Uncle Wyatt finished school and took over P3. Only, they couldn't have any. I felt like Uncle Wyatt started treating me differently because of it. Like he resented me. I thought it was his fault they couldn't. Turns out, they had found out Mom was sick, but they didn't want to scare me, so no one told me. They caught it earlier because Mom went in for a physical to find out why she wasn't getting pregnant. They were able to treat the condition for a couple of years, and I didn't know about it until it was pretty advanced."

"I didn't tell you?" Chris asked, shocked.

"Mom begged you not to," Lucky replied. "You agreed because you were bound and determined to save her, so you convinced yourself it wouldn't matter. You did find a way eventually. A potion that would link Mom to Uncle Wyatt, so he could then heal her. Only he refused to do it. He was certain the Elders would strip him of his powers for breaking the rules. He said the needs of one didn't out weigh the needs of many. Said he couldn't take the risk."

Chris' mouth fell open as his heart sank. "He let Casey die?"

Lucky nodded. "He let his wife die because his destiny was more important. He let my mother die because he was afraid to break a rule, and I hated him for it." The teenager lowered his head, looking ashamed. "I let that anger control me, and when I went to the past to save Mom from Zayel . . . I did something incredibly reckless and stupid."

"What did you do?"

"I told mom not to trust Uncle Wyatt," he admitted softly. "I told her she shouldn't love him. Said he wasn't who she thought he was, and he resented me."

Chris shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. "Lucky, how could you do that? Your mom was already an emotional basket case at that point in her life. You played her."

" _La jodí_ ," Lucky snapped. "I get it. I changed the timeline for the worse. When I got back, I found out that demon, Zayel, had gotten Wyatt to cheat on Mom, and on top of what I had told her, she broke up with him. They never got back together. So, when you got sucked into the past, she went after you to try to bring you home right away because I was so upset you were gone, and I was all she had left. Only, that's where she met Perry."

Chris didn't like where this was going. Not at all. He held his breath, waiting for the shoe to drop.

"Nothing happened while they were in the past," Lucky explained. "Mom wasn't sure if it was still you just merged with Perry, and she would never willingly betray you and Molly. Only, when you guys got back to the future and Perry was a totally different person . . . things got complicated fast."

"They fell in love," Chris realized.

Lucky nodded. "Perry tried to fight it at first. He didn't want a reason for Wyatt to hate him, and it was pretty clear Uncle Wyatt still loved Mom. Perry even went to try to find Bianca, but she didn't know him. Had no idea what they'd meant to each other, and I think that was the final straw for him. He and Mom got together shortly after. Uncle Wyatt didn't take it well."

"What do you mean?"

"Uncle Wyatt had still been holding on to hope Mom would take him back someday," Lucky said, sounding almost sympathetic. "Seeing her fall in love with Perry broke him. He blamed magic for making him lose the love of his life. So much so, he stripped his powers."

If Chris had been drinking something, it would have come spewing out of his mouth. "What?"

"Ironic, right?" Lucky commented humorlessly. "First time, he loses her because he can't risk having his powers removed. Second time he removes the powers because he lost her."

"No Twice Blessed," Chris breathed. "I can't believe it, but that's not the end of the world, right?"

Lucky sighed. "Wyatt wasn't the only one to lose his powers. When Mom got sick, Perry drank the soul binding potion to save her. He healed her just as planned. It worked, but it came at a cost. The Elders made Perry fall from grace. He became totally mortal. Knowing the next generation didn't have a powerhouse anymore to stop them, the Underworld started gunning for Grams and her sisters. Aunt Phoebe was killed in an attack, breaking the Power of Three. You and mom and the cousins tried to fight the good fight, but it was too much. I ended up coming back to a world where people had been seriously injured or killed. People who had been alive before were gone, and it was my fault. I knew I had to fix it."

"That's when you came back the second time," Chris realized. "When you came to talk to Molly."

"Yeah, lot of good that did," Lucky muttered. "I was so clear. Get Mom and Uncle Wyatt back together and in love like they were before the demon messed with Uncle Wyatt. Keep Mom out of the past. Did she listen? No."

Chris fixed his son a sharp look. "Don't talk about Molly like that. She tried. You were asking a lot of one person. She did manage to get Casey and Wyatt back together. They're together right now."

Lucky folded his arms, quirking a brow. "You sure about that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Latest timeline, Perry takes the potion again," Lucky said. "They were married in my future. Only instead of Wyatt being sad and mopey and powerless, he's The Friggin' Source."

Chris laughed. It was high pitched and uncomfortable, but he couldn't seem to stop. He shook his head, trying to wrap his mind around what his son was telling him, but he couldn't. It didn't make sense. Wyatt would not turn evil. Wyatt didn't have a mean bone in his body. Perry had saved him. Perry wouldn't take the soul binding potion either. It was ridiculous. Only . . . Perry had smelled mangos . . . and Chris couldn't breathe. He just couldn't.

"I don't know everything that happened," Lucky said. "I was young, and I think Perry and Mom were both ashamed of something they did, and they didn't want me to know. What I do know is whatever goes wrong, happens at your wedding, and it involves Wyatt's wife."

The shock and confusion snapped Chris back from his momentary freak out. He frowned. "You just said Casey was married to Perry."

"I'm talking about Bianca," Lucky said. "She does something to Uncle Wyatt, and he turns evil. They are currently King and Queen of the Underworld. Though, honestly, I think she's pulling most of the strings. She's the key to fixing all of this for everyone."

Realization dawned on Chris, and it made his heart hurt. "Wyatt gave you that scar, didn't he?"

"It doesn't matter," Lucky answered, irritated. "Just focus on Bianca. If you can save her, you can save Wyatt. Perry told me she had been corrupted by a potion, but the further down the rabbit hole she goes, the harder it will be to pull her back. Time is seriously of the essence."

"He wanted The Hollow, so he attacked his own nephew," Chris said softly. "He cursed you."

Lucky sighed. "Yeah. Not one of my best memories."

"I can't believe this," Chris breathed, feeling sick.

Looking far too much like his Uncle Perry, Lucky grabbed Chris' shoulders shaking him. "Focus. Please. Whatever happened to me in my past is irrelevant. Save Bianca. Save Wyatt. Period."

"After I die, Perry raises you with Casey," Chris realized, still in shock. "It's why you're so much like him."

Lucky looked stricken. "He's the reason I'm alive. He taught me everything he knew about surviving an evil Wyatt, but it wasn't enough in the end. See, he distracted Wyatt while I absorbed The Hollow. It didn't end well."

"Wyatt murdered Perry?"

"He'd wanted to for years," Lucky answered sadly. "I ended up giving him his opportunity."

Chris put a hand on his son's shoulder, and this time Lucky let him. "You can't blame yourself. Your Uncle Perry loves you. He would never want to see you hurt."

"I know. It's just hard. After the event, we got really close."

"Event?"

Lucky turned his head away looking miserable.

"You didn't mention my death in the other two timelines," Chris pointed out, a sick truth slowly forming in his mind. "It must happen in the current one, which means I was murdered by . . . Oh God."

Lucky winced. It told Chris he was right. "Dad, please, don't do this to yourself."

"Lucky, tell me the truth." Chris swallowed thickly, struggling to get the words out. "Wyatt kills me, doesn't he?"

"He isn't in his right mind," Lucky answered softly. "He thought you were Perry, and he didn't mean to kill anyone. It was an accident. He lost control of his powers. When he realized what he'd done . . . it was the thing that pushed him over the edge. He was lost to evil forever."

Chris let out a shaky breath, running his hand through his hair. After a minute to process the idea his big brother, his protector, would be the one to kill him, Chris said more than asked, "It happens soon, doesn't it?"

Jade eyes growing teary, Lucky answered, "If we can't save Bianca . . . stop her from doing whatever it is she does to Uncle Wyatt . . . you won't get to see your honeymoon."

000

Perry closed his eyes, reciting the blessing for the handfasting as he paced across the attic. When he stumbled on one of the phrases, Leo, who was sitting on the sofa, wrinkled his nose and shook his head. Perry sighed, throwing his hands up in frustration. "I'm never going to memorize it all by tomorrow. I'm going to completely ruin their wedding."

His father smiled gently at him, rising from the sofa to put a hand on his shoulder. "Perry, you're going to do just fine. Want to know how I know?"

"Sure. Shoot."

"Because I know you," Leo said, the pride in his voice unmistakable. "You have never failed at anything you ever put your mind to accomplishing. Including saving the entire fate of the world."

Perry smiled softly, his eyes getting moist. He still wasn't used to getting praise from his father. Even though Leo had kept his promise and been there for his sons, Perry hadn't grown up with it. Feeling affection and pride from his Dad was still new to him, and he couldn't help but soak it in for all he was worth, fearing someday it would go away. Someday his father would find him a disappointment again.

"Now, we just need to figure out what is causing your hang-up," Leo continued. "It's the same part getting you tripped up each time. Is there some reason the phrase 'to acknowledge the eternal bond shared by both of you' makes you stumble?"

The son shrugged. "It's kind of wordy."

Leo gave him a fatherly look clearly asking 'are you really going to lie to me?' He drew out in admonishment, "Perry . . ."

"It's Bianca," Perry admitted in a huff. He ran a hand over his face before shaking his head in frustration. "Everytime I think of that line I think of her, and how she's out there right now corrupted by evil, and I have no idea how to save her this time. I thought if I could get her to remember how we felt about each other, she'd snap out of it. Instead, she rammed an energy ball into my chest."

The father looked horrified. "She what?"

Perry waved him off. "It's fine. Wyatt healed it. I've had worse anyway."

"That's not helping, Christopher," Leo said automatically.

"You can't full name me when that's not my name anymore," Perry grumbled.

Leo smirked. "To me, you'll always be Christopher, so I can full name you if I want. Father's prerogative."

Despite himself, Perry smiled. "Yeah, okay, Dad."

"Now, back to Bianca," Leo started, "do you have any idea what kind of potion was used to make her evil? If so, we just need to make an antidote then you two can start to figure out how you really feel. Whether you still fit together in this world."

Perry folded his arms. "That's the thing. I've been trying to research morality reversing potions, and it seems like most of them have a point of no return. They generally aren't just a spell. They release the darkness already there - they don't create it out of thin air, which makes them incredibly hard to counter. Even worse, eventually, the darkness just consumes the person until who they are no longer exists."

"How much time does that take?"

The Elder shrugged. "Different for everyone. For all I know, she could be lost already."

Leo held up a hand. "Let's not assume the worst. If she hasn't reached that point, did you find out what the answer is to fix it?"

"There is no potion that can cure it," Perry replied. "The research all indicates it has to be a strong emotional pull back to the light. Love. True Happiness. Even overwhelming sorrow. The idea is it will remind the person of their humanity."

Leo nodded taking in the information. After a moment, he said, "You love her. I think that has to be the key."

"I love her," Perry agreed, "but she doesn't love me back. Right now, she hates me. I don't know if I can save her this time."

Leo locked eyes with him. "Son, if you love her, if she's your soulmate, fight for her. Use all that Halliwell stubbornness you inherited, and don't you ever give up on her." He finished with a grin, "After all, a wise man once told me all that you and me versus the world stuff doesn't just go away."

Perry laughed, nodding his head in acceptance of his own words. "Well, I guess I can't argue with that, huh?"

"No," Leo chuckled, "I should think not."

"Then that settles it," Perry said determined. "After we get Chris and Molly married tomorrow, I start a new mission: Rescue the woman I love."

Little did he know by sun down the next night the phrase would mean something very different than he intended in this moment. Everything in Perry's life was about to change forever.

000

Casey smiled as she put the finishing touches on Molly's nails. She put the bottle of clear top coat polish down on the dining room table and tapped Molly's shoulder lightly giving the other woman the go-ahead to finally look since Casey had wanted it to be a surprise. She had given Molly french tipped nails and added glittery silver accents along the bottom edge of the white for a little special detail.

When Molly saw them she broke into a huge smile. She held up her hands moving them this way and that to properly study her friend's work. She looked at Casey, and her brilliant smile faltered slightly. She turned her head away.

The latina frowned. "What's wrong? You don't like it? I can do something different . . ."

"You're in a wheelchair with portable oxygen, and you're doing my stupid nails," Molly said. The whitelighter edged a teary look to her friend. "It's not right."

"Don't be ridiculous," Casey replied, rolling her eyes. "Am I just supposed to sit here looking sad and broken? I don't want to spend my time that way. I want to concentrate on the people I love, and the beautiful wedding of my two best friends."

"You should be resting," Molly argued feebly.

"Stop fussing. I'll get an eternal one soon enough," Casey joked.

Molly didn't even crack a smile. She fixed her hazel eyes on her friend's brown. "It's not funny."

" _Siento_. Bad habit."

"How are you really doing with everything?" Molly softly questioned. "No more avoiding. You had your first round of dialysis earlier. Piper took you right?"

"Yeah." Casey chewed on her bottom lip, eyes shifting away from Molly's gaze. She spun the nail polish bottle between her fingertips. "Dialysis is not fun. Beats death, though, so there's that. Don't know why, but it gave me a pounding headache. I kinda feel like when the blood went back in some of it wound up in the wrong spots. I feel really funny. Off."

Molly put her hand on her friend's forearm. "I'm sorry."

Casey shrugged still fiddling with the bottle. "It's not all bad. I went from six percent kidney function to ten percent, so that's something, right? And, the warm blankets they give you are _divino_. I want to steal one and just wrap myself in it forever."

Molly hesitated before asking, "Have you seen Wyatt?"

The nail polish bottle dropped to the table with a small bang.

"Casey?"

The witch shook her head and was very clearly trying not to cry.

"You think he knows about Perry, don't you?"

Casey shrugged, eyes brimming with tears. She was biting her lip so hard Molly was surprised it wasn't bleeding.

"What happened?"

"I don't really even know," Casey answered, a tremor to her voice. "One minute we were talking like we always do. I was flirting with him a bit then all the sudden he was furious. Said I wanted Perry out of the blue. He stormed out. The day I came home, one of the nurses found a bunch of roses on the floor outside my room with an apology note from him attached. He never came in though and now, he won't respond to my calls."

Molly frowned, shaking her head. "That makes no sense. If he came to apologize why didn't he go in?"

"I think he may have overheard me talking to Perry," Casey said quietly. "I think he knows we slept together."

The whitelighter sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh God. Poor Wyatt. Poor you. Poor everyone. This is horrible. To find out that way without giving you the chance to explain, he probably thinks you don't love him anymore, and I can only imagine what he must think of Perry."

"I am trying really hard not to think about any of that right now," Casey admitted. "Wyatt hates me, so he won't want to bind himself to me, which means I'm going to die. Selfish as it may be, I don't want to spend what time I have left focusing on my guilt and shame and heartache. I want to spend as much time as I can with Lucky, so he never doubts how much I love him. I want to watch you walk down the aisle in your stunning dress, and tease Chris when he cries about how gorgeous you are. I want to help Perry get Bianca back because even if he thinks he doesn't deserve love he does. I want to enjoy my family while I still can."

"Stop it." Molly shook her head, eyes growing moist. "Don't talk like that. You're not going to die. Wyatt will come around. He loves you. He's loved you forever. He'll forgive you once he's calmed down."

"I don't want to die with him hating me," Casey said. "Then again, I really don't want to die at all. Despite what Perry told me."

Molly frowned. "About what?"

Casey finally looked up at her. "Dying. I asked him what it feels like. He said it wasn't so bad. Said a peace comes over you at the end. I think he was lying. I mean, the man was stabbed to death. That had to be excruciating not peaceful. I think he lied to make me feel better in case his plan failed."

"Wyatt will come through," Molly repeated. "I know he will."

"Come through with what?" a deep voice asked from the entrance of the parlor.

Casey's heart fluttered as she turned to find Wyatt leaning casually against the wall, arms folded over his broad chest. He looked relaxed but a strange expression was lurking in his eyes that she couldn't quite interpret. It unsettled her to find he had a look she didn't know.

Wyatt fixed the strange stare on her. He repeated blandly, "Come through with what?"

"Did Chris or Perry talk to you?" Molly asked, a crinkle to her brow.

"No."

Molly slid an anxious look to Casey before returning her attention to Wyatt. "Chris was looking for you earlier. He wanted to talk to you about a few things. You mean he never found you?"

"No."

The women exchanged worried looks before Casey took a turn at the suddenly succinct Twice Blessed. She carefully asked, "Can you sense if he's okay? If he was looking for you and didn't find you, maybe he ran into trouble?"

Without blinking he responded, "Chris is at P3." He tilted his head just slightly, murky blue eyes boring into Casey's brown. "Now, come through with what?"

The way he was acting was so out of character even for an angry Wyatt. He seemed unfeeling actually. Cold. He really did hate her. At the thought, Casey found her breath coming in shorter. She put her hand to her chest as it tightened painfully. Without even having to ask for it, Molly handed her the portable oxygen from the table. She put on the mask and took a few shaky breaths feeling her chest loosen as she was able to breathe more easily.

"Perry came up with a way to save Casey," Molly said on her friend's behalf. "It actually involves that soul binding potion the Elders wanted you to make."

"Bind our souls so hers can't leave," Wyatt surmised.

Molly smiled, nodding. "Exactly."

His eyes locked on Casey's face. A shadow had creeped into them making them darker, colder somehow. There was no anger on his face, though. No affection either. It was just . . . blank. He asked neutrally, "Do you want to bind yourself to me?"

Casey wondered if the shadow was a fear she'd say no. Say she didn't want to be with him forever. She met his gaze, removed the oxygen mask and firmly answered, "Yes, I do."

His expression didn't change. "Forever?"

"Yes," she confirmed. "I love you. I want to be with you always."

Molly must have picked up on the tension. She rose from her chair. Looking nervously between them, she said, "I should meet Piper. She's taking over the food for the wedding and asked I go over some items with her." She looked to Casey. "Thanks again for the manicure."

" _De nada_."

The whitelighter was nearly out of the room when she paused to address Wyatt. "Oh, since Chris didn't get a chance to tell you, the wedding is tomorrow. He was going to ask you to be his best man."

"Not Perry?" Wyatt asked, a hint of disdain leaking through.

Molly looked thrown. She shook her head, stuttering, "Uh, no, of course not. You're his best friend. The brother he grew up with. Why would you think he'd pick Perry to stand up for him?"

Wyatt turned his eyes to Casey saying simply, "Perry tends to get things I want an awful lot. Thought I should double check."

Molly sucked in her lips shooting Casey a wide-eyed, worried look. Through the expression she silently asked her friend if she wanted her to stay. The way Wyatt was behaving the whitelighter was actually feeling apprehensive at the idea of leaving her sick friend alone with him. It was only when the witch gave a subtle nod of reassurance that Molly finally ducked out of the room.

"That was about me," Casey cut into the silence that followed Molly's departure.

"Was it?" Wyatt challenged. He pushed off against the wall to stand in front of her. Towering over her he added, "I wasn't aware Perry had taken you from me. Did I miss something?"

Casey flushed. "No. Just, the last time you spoke to me it was to accuse me of having feelings for him."

"Do you?"

"No."

Wyatt nodded slowly. He finally relented in his hard stare and sauntered casually to take a chair next to her. He smiled at her then, but it wasn't right. It wasn't the comforting, loving expression she knew like she knew her own name. It was forced and tight, and it made her stomach churn.

"I saw the flowers you bought for me," Casey began cautiously. "Why were they on the floor outside my room?"

Pain flashed on his face for a minute before the stoic mask returned. He answered, "I had to leave suddenly." Before she could ask why, he questioned coolly, "Did you like them?"

"They were beautiful. Thank you."

A twisted smile was on his lips. With a touch of a sneer he replied, "So glad to hear you liked them."

" _Christo_ ," Casey said softly, watching his face for a reaction. It was a trick Dean Winchester had taught her a few years ago. Demons flinch at the name of The Lord, and the way Wyatt was acting, she had to check if he was possessed.

He didn't flinch. He laughed. It wasn't a pleasant sound. "You think I'm a demon? I really feel loved now."

"You're not acting like yourself," Casey responded carefully. "In this family, one can never be too sure."

" _In_ this family?" Wyatt repeated quirking a brow. "You're not a Halliwell, and you've made it undeniably clear you never want to be."

Casey locked her eyes on his face. She couldn't read his expression again. It was too shuttered, and Wyatt was normally so full of warmth and life this numb, blank version was completely unknown. Completely terrifying. She felt her breath get shaky, but for once, she didn't think it was her disease causing it. She struggled to explain, "I was scared, but I'm not anymore. Lying in that hospital bed thinking about life and death . . . about what really matters in it all. . . I realized I very much wanted to be your wife. If you still want to get married, I'm in one hundred percent."

The hard look on his face fell to confusion. For just that moment the familiar affection returned to his blue eyes, but all too quickly the expression went blank again. "I see."

That was all he had to say to her almost proposal? She wasn't sure if her chest hurt from her lungs not working right, or the sorrow suddenly clogging her heart. Just in case, she put the oxygen mask back on, trying to take slow steady breaths in and out. Her lungs burned so badly with the effort tears sprang to her eyes. Or at least, she was telling herself the tears were from the physical pain.

A strange quality to his voice, he asked, "You don't have much time left, do you?"

She shook her head.

"How long?"

Taking off the mask she answered quietly, "A few days. Please, don't tell anyone. There's nothing to be done, and I want Chris and Molly to enjoy their wedding."

"There is something that can be done," Wyatt reminded her. "We can take the soul binding potion."

Casey did a double take. "What? You . . . you'd be willing to do that?"

The wrong smile returned to his face, and she nearly shivered at the sight of it. Ice down her back would have left her less chilled than his gaze as he asked, "Why wouldn't I? We love each other, don't we? There's no reason for us not to be together for all of time, right?"

"Right," she drew out feeling uneasy.

"Then plan on taking that potion, Casey."

Casey felt like this should have been a powerful, happy moment. A moment where he took her in his arms and pulled her in for a passionate, loving kiss they would remember for the rest of their lives. Only it wasn't. While Wyatt did slip his hand to the back of her head and pull her in for a kiss, it was rough and domineering. He bit her bottom lip hard enough to make her yelp, but when she tried to pull away, he jerked her hair to stop her. As he finally broke off the disturbing embrace, he pulled her hair again to yank her backwards in her wheelchair as he rose from his chair.

Looking down on her without an ounce of emotion he told her, "Let's plan on taking that potion after the wedding. The sooner the better." The twisted smile returned to his usually handsome features making them sinister. "After all, I can't wait to make you mine."

As he sauntered away, Casey touched two fingers to her lip. They came back bloodied. Her breath hitched hard, and she started to sob. She had no idea what to think about what had just happened, but she did know one thing.

Wyatt Halliwell had just scared the hell out of her.

TBC. . .


	30. Treat You Better

Firstly: Apologies for the long wait. I was out of town for the holidays and didn't have a computer. When I got back I really struggled with this chapter, so I hope it turned out okay.

Secondly: As always those of you reading and especially those reviewing make this whole work of love worth it. Special thanks to sise87, Kiara and gabyhatt for taking the time to share your thoughts. Nothing more motivating than a review :)

Chapter 30

The entire Halliwell clan was gathered at the manor for the rehearsal dinner minus two very important members. Piper Halliwell couldn't help but feel intense unease when she noticed her youngest and oldest sons were missing in action. While the dinner wasn't technically planned to start for another ten minutes, it wasn't like Chris to wait to the last minute to make an appearance, especially when he was the guest of honor. Wyatt tended to push the limits of timeliness, but the way Casey was sitting by herself off in a corner made the mother's internal alarms go off.

She knew something strange was going on between her eldest and his longtime girlfriend. It had shocked and disappointed her Wyatt hadn't gone to Casey's first dialysis session. Not that she minded taking the younger witch, but Piper felt she could have used her boyfriend's support. The Halliwell matriarch thought she'd taught her son to stay true to the people he cared about through good and bad, but she feared maybe her son was letting his fear get the better of him. The idea of losing his only love had to be terrifying, and whereas Chris and Perry both tended to hold too tight, Wyatt's instinct was always to play things more conservatively when his heart was on the line. The mother worried it may cost him some day.

Piper cast a look at Perry, smiling softly as her normally calm and collected son fidgeted uncomfortably in the middle of the circle the twins and Phoebe's girls had formed around him. It was the first time they'd gotten the chance to meet their new cousin amid the craziness that was all their lives, and they'd jumped the poor boy with more zeal than the paparazzi. To his credit, he'd indulged their many personal inquiries without too much aggravation, but it seemed his limit had been met as he finally made a polite exit on the excuse of needing to help set the table.

The mother's smile widened across her face as her son beelined it to her side shooting her the same look he used to when he'd been in the past and her sisters were doing something to annoy or frustrate him. She laughed softly. "Going that well, huh?"

"I love them," he said seriously, "but I may hurt them soon."

Piper folded her arms still grinning. "I take it they were being their normal, inquisitive selves?"

"They were making a list of all the things Chris and I have in common and different," Perry answered wrly. "Their first category was girlfriends."

His mother quirked an eyebrow in question.

"No," he replied. "I'm not telling you either."

She wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, didn't think so." After pause, she grew more somber, her eyes seeking out those of her son. It still surprised her how different they were than Chris'. While they were the same shape and shade, the similarities ended there. Perry's held a depth of sorrow and guilt he'd never be free of, and it broke her heart each time she saw it. With a sad breath, Piper tilted her head slightly before asking, "So, aside from the nosey cousins, how are you doing? You've had a lot to adjust to since you got back."

Perry shrugged playing nonchalant. "I'm fine." Seeing her dubious look, he added with a teasing grin, "Well, working with the elders is easier than dealing with you and your sisters if that's what you mean."

Piper sucked in her lips. He had been teasing, but it was something she'd felt horrible about for over two decades. She put her hand on his arm. "I am so sorry, Sweetheart. You have no idea how many times the three of us wish we could go back and be different be . . . better. You must have been so disappointed in us."

She didn't fail to notice how he dropped his gaze. When Chris did that it meant she'd hit an uncomfortable topic right on the nose. He visibly swallowed and shrugged again. "It's fine. I didn't exactly make it easy for you three either."

"You were trying to save the world," she defended. "We were too busy with our personal desires to help you. We were awful."

"I have a confession to make," he said softly. He wet his lips, shifting uncomfortably and still not able to look her in the eyes. "I sort of . . . I was the one to put you in the pocket realms. I was working with Gith to teach you three a lesson.

Piper raised her eyebrows taking in the admission. She wasn't entirely surprised. It wasn't the first questionable thing he'd done in his quest to save Wyatt, and based on how uncooperative they'd been she could understand how he may have been getting desperate. Looking at him now, seeing her son instead of a neurotic whitelighter hell-bent on ruining her life, she smiled softly, sadly. "It was wrong, but I understand why you did it."

He edged a look at her, reminding her of Chris when he and Casey had accidentally broken the front window playing catch. It frustrated the mother the only frame of reference she had about Perry's expressions and tells were from his twin. She hoped someday she'd be able to read him based on their own mother-son connection.

"I'm really sorry, Mom."

"It's over," she reassured him. "Let's just say we all did things we regret and leave it in the past where it belongs."

Perry smiled softly. "Okay. I can do that."

"Just don't tell your aunts," she added with a smile. "They'll be likely to sic your cousins on you again for payback."

He laughed lightly, nodding. "Definitely not then."

Piper glanced at her watch then surveyed the guests again. Still no Chris or Wyatt. Molly was talking animatedly to Prue and Phoebe, so luckily, she hadn't noticed her groom-to-be was missing. Her stomach coiled as she realized Chris was officially late to his own rehearsal dinner. Her son was many things but late was very seldom one of them.

"Mom?" Perry questioned, noting the concern in her eyes.

"Can you sense your brothers?"

Perry closed his eyes only to open them a moment later. He shook his head looking every bit as worried as she did now. The young man turned his gaze toward Casey and frowned before returning to look at his mother. "I have an idea of what may be going on. I'll get back to you."

Before she could say anything, Piper watched her son dart across the conservatory to where the latina witch was sitting staring off into nothing. Perry squatted in front of her and said something Piper couldn't hear, but whatever it was made the girl's head lower. A moment later, Perry was wheeling her out of the room to somewhere more private. The knot in Piper's stomach curled more tightly. She had taken one step in the direction they'd gone when a small hand grabbed hers. She turned to find her grandson looking piteously up at her.

"Grams," Lucky started, sounding afraid, "something is wrong with the balance."

Piper frowned. "Balance of what, Sweetie?"

"Magic."

The Halliwell matriarch knew her grandson well enough to know one never discounted what he said. Not if you were smart. She caught her husband's eye across the room and gestured him over with her head. Once he had reached their side, she turned her attention back to Lucky. "Tell your grandpa what you just told me."

"Magic is all messed up," he said, bottom lip quivering. "It looks and feels wrong. Something real bad happened to make it like this."

Leo's blue-green eyes shot to his wife's brown. He knew better than anyone Lucky's connection to the forces of magic. He hadn't told anyone his theory on this yet, but he feared it meant his little grandson had been chosen as the next Angel of Light. One who's ultimate destiny was to preserve the neutrality of magic and protect its greatest power - The Hollow.

"What do you think this means?" Piper asked the former elder.

"Lucky," Leo started, squatting to his grandchild's height, "what does it look like to you right now?"

The little boy's eyes flashed golden, and his tiny face paled. When his eyes returned to a sage color, he looked at his grandpa and said, "Warren magic is one of the thickest threads. It's burned and broken. The whole web is coming down. It's getting cold and dark."

Then to their horror, their grandchild passed out.

000

Out in the garden, the moon cast a blue-silver glow over Casey as she sat in her wheelchair next to the gazebo. Perry couldn't help but feel it gave her an eerily ethereal glow. It unnerved him. She looked unbelievably beautiful in a haunted way. Like she'd been summoned from the beyond rather than still part of the world. With that thought, he took her hands in his wanting to assure himself she was still really here.

Casey slipped her hands from his, turning her head away. "Don't. Please."

Perry's chest constricted at the sound of her voice. Small and broken. He didn't fail to notice the tell-tale shine to her eyes despite the dim lighting. He instinctively palmed the side of her face, obliging her to look at him. "Hey. What's going on? Talk to me."

"You asked if I knew where Wyatt was," she said softly. "I don't. I don't know where Chris is either."

"You also had a distinct reaction when I mentioned Wyatt," Perry pointed out. "Something happened, didn't it?"

Casey wouldn't look at him for a long while. Finally, so quietly he almost didn't hear her, she answered, "I'm almost positive he knows about us."

Perry inhaled sharply as the words hit him. His mind became frantic for a minute, worrying about what Wyatt thought, and if his brother hated him now. Wondering what exactly he knew and how he'd found out. What were they going to do? It wasn't until he saw a tear slip down his friend's face the thoughts screeched to a halt, and he came back to the moment. He automatically wiped away her tear with his thumb. "Please, don't cry."

"I've never seen him like that before," she said shakily.

Something in her expression and the tenor of her voice made Perry's blood turn icy. His voice came out much calmer than he felt as he questioned, "What did he do, Casey?"

She gave a one-shouldered shrug as though it weren't a big deal, but her face had crumpled to despair, belying the gesture. When Perry plaintively repeated her name, she squeezed her eyes shut and her breath hitched hard.

Perry wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly as he smoothed down her hair. After a minute he noted her breathing was getting increasingly wheezy and quick. He pulled back and quickly orbed her portable oxygen into his hands. He gently slipped the strap of the mask over her head so it covered her mouth and nose. He turned on the machine and watched as his best friend took in shaky breath after shaky breath. Perry noted she looked even more unearthly pale, and he could hear the rasp of every breath. Could see the way her chest was heaving with effort even though she was only taking small, short inhales. It broke his heart.

Once she was feeling steadier, Casey removed the mask and finally answered his question. "The boy I grew up with - the man I've loved for so long - he has always been kind and gentle. More often silly than serious. Wyatt has always made me think of warmth personified. Only when I saw him this afternoon . . . he was blank."

"Like numb?"

She shook her head. "No. Like . . . a void."

The ice in Perry's veins settled hard in his stomach. Flashes of his Wyatt filled his mind's eye. Wyatt blandly saying there was no good or evil. The Twice Blessed not so much as blinking an eye as he killed a witch who had betrayed him. How his brother's blue eyes were lifeless as he closed his fist to choke the life out of Perry, telling him he didn't need him.

"He was cold," Casey went on, not noticing the panic behind her companion's stoic face. "He didn't overtly say anything threatening, but the tone was . . . possessive? Even when he said he'd take the soul binding potion for me it was so emotionless. Then the kiss. . ." She broke off, turning her head away, unable to finish.

Perry swallowed thickly, something about the look on her face scaring him. "Casey?"

"It wasn't a nice kiss," she supplied quietly.

The Elder noticed her fingers unconsciously go to her bottom lip. He quickly pulled her hand away and noticed her lip was swollen and a scab had formed where skin had been punctured. The icy feeling he'd had melted with rage. Perry rose to his feet, shaking his head. "That son of a bitch."

Casey reached out grabbing his hand. "Please, stop. I'm okay."

Perry's eyes were thunderous as they locked on her face. "One magically induced night between us does not justify him hurting you. Scaring you."

"I'm not-"

"-Don't even try to tell me otherwise," he cut in, sharply. "You're terrified right now."

"You're overreacting," Casey argued.

"He bit you," Perry half-yelled. "He scared you. That's abusive."

Casey lowered her head. Sounding miserable she said, "I shouldn't have said anything. You already have issues with Wyatt, and I don't want to make things worse. Besides, it's my fault. I cheated and lied. He has a right to be upset with me."

Perry dropped to his knees in front of her, grabbing her chin just firm enough to force her to look at him. "He has no right to get rough with you. Ever. It's inexcusable. The fact you're trying to excuse it scares me, Casey. Is that the kind of man you want Lucky to become? How you would want him to treat a woman?"

She winced. "No."

"Then don't you dare accept that treatment yourself."

Casey looked up, meeting his gaze. "I know Wyatt loves me. I have always felt it, and even today, even with him acting so bizarre and scary, my heart still tells me to trust him. To trust our love for one another. I feel like something happened to him."

"Yeah," Perry agreed, "he found out we slept together and went off the deep end."

Casey adamantly shook her head. "No. The Wyatt I know wouldn't react like this. In the past when we hurt each other he would get unbearably sad not angry. If he was acting remotely hurt, it would make sense, but the coldness isn't his style. The more I think about it the more certain I am this wasn't him. Maybe it was a spell? A potion like with Bianca? It has to be something because Wyatt Halliwell isn't capable of being so cruel."

Perry's expression grew shuttered. "Believe me: He is."

"Not this time," she argued. "You saved him."

"Maybe I didn't."

"You did," she countered passionately. "Wyatt is a good man. The best man I have ever known with the patience and forgiveness level of a saint, which is why we need to start looking into possible magical reasons for why he was acting so off. Maybe a demon attacked him who can increase anger? I thought I saw something about that in the Book of Shadows once."

Perry let out a breath knowing he would never convince her Wyatt had fallen from his white steed. She loved his brother too much to see his faults. To see how easily swayed he could be by darkness and power. Casey loved fiercely, and she would defend Wyatt with everything she had even after what he'd done to her this afternoon.

The Elder rose to his full height. "Stay here. I'll fix this."

As he moved to leave, Casey caught hold of his hand again, stopping him. "Where are you going?"

"To find Wyatt."

"What are you going to do?" she asked, brown eyes brimming with worry.

Perry smiled softly down at his friend. Wyatt had no idea how lucky he was to have this woman in his corner. To have her love and faith. Perry bent to kiss the top of her head, then murmured into her ear, "Save the man you love. Again."

000

Bianca knew someone was following her. She may never have been an active assassin, but she'd had all the same training as the rest of her coven. Normally, she'd be able to shake a tail in a matter of minutes, but whoever her new shadow was had skill. The person had stayed just out sight but very nearby for nearly half an hour despite her evasive maneuvers.

Finally tired of the cat and mouse game, Bianca slipped into the next alley and lightly shimmered up to the fire escape hanging from the side of the building. Keeping to the shadows, Bianca moved to a crouch, keeping a sharp eye out for her stalker.

A moment later, a figure turned the corner, the hood of an olive green coat blocking his face. Bianca would recognize the tall, lean build and cocky gait anywhere. How she knew she couldn't quite be sure, but she knew nonetheless. Seemed to be happening more often. Facts about him coming to her from thin air.

Pushing down the flutter in her stomach at the thought of him, Bianca shimmered behind him ready to ram her hand in his back. What she hadn't counted on was her hand going straight through the entire body, which shimmered and rippled red before vanishing.

A moment later the sound of a breaking vial filled her ears. Looking behind her she spotted the shards of a potion bottle and a golden mist rising from it and filling her. Green eyes locked on her face from underneath the hood of a coat, and she frowned knowing they weren't right. "Perry?"

"Try again."

Perry couldn't astral project. It was Chris. She felt warm, foggy and vaguely faint. "What . . . what did you do to me?"

Before Chris could answer, Bianca was ambushed by images from her past lives.

 _She was dressed in a rich brown velvet dress, hair braided down to the middle of her back and sitting on the greenest grass she'd ever seen in front of a sparkling lake. A pure white orchid floated in front of her, making her smile and blush prettily. She edged a look to her companion._

 _Perry was lying on his side next to her dressed in a loose white shirt and brown trousers. A small grin pulled the corner of his mouth up. "Prithee, sweet Morgana, willst thou continue to deny thy love?"_

" _Love, Good Sorcerer, is not thine aim," she retorted archly._

 _The man's grin slipped, a frown taking its place. He moved swiftly to his knees in front of her. "Fairest Lady, thine heart is all I desire. How canst I prove my devotion to thee?"_

 _Plucking the floating orchid from the air, the maiden brought it to her nose, smelling its sweet scent deeply. When she let out her breath, she replied, "Teach me. Givest thou magick secrets unto me, and I shall return your favour with mine affection."_

 _Merlin grew pensive, weighing her request. After a moment, he replied, "A kiss first, M'Lady."_

" _A kiss, and you shall be mine teacher?"_

 _Green eyes locked intensely on her brown. "I shall swear to be a great deal more than that, Morgana."_

 _The young woman leaned slowly forward, her eyes staying trained on those of the famous wizard. Her breath hitched in anticipation. She could feel his breath on her lips, and her stomach flipped. Then their mouths met and moved as one. The kiss was relatively chaste, but it made Morgan Le Fey dizzy with its potency._

The image faded. So many other snippets whizzed by. Lessons by the lake or in his study. Romantic rendezvous under the stars. A banquet and dance. Making love in his chambers by the pale moonlight. Hundreds of moments came and passed, ingraining themselves in Bianca's mind. Then, they slowed and stopped on a scene in a forest . . .

 _The cave was drawing nearer and Morgana knew the time to say goodbye to her lover was nearly come. It twisted her heart, but if she ever hoped to get her revenge on Arthur, she could not have the wizard protecting the boy. Merlin was loyal to The King. He would stop her if it came to it, and her hatred demanded revenge for the ruin of her family._

" _Prithee, Love, where art thou leading us?" Merlin asked, taking in the strange surroundings. There was magick buzzing in the air here though he could not quite decipher from where it originated._

 _Morgana moved to her tiptoes to take sipping kisses from his lips. When they parted, she replied softly, "Trust me, Beloved. We have nearly arrived. The cave is full of beauty unmatched."_

" _Thine is a beauty unmatched," Merlin replied, caressing her cheek with his fingers as he lightly brushed a stray strand of hair from her face. He kissed her again, and she nearly crumbled, nearly casting aside her lifelong vendetta for this man who made her weak and dizzy with his embrace. Nearly._

 _The entrance of the cave loomed oppressively in front of her now. The time had come. Her heart squeezed painfully. She would be ripping it from her chest soon. Abandoning it here for all of time. Knowing this, she threw her arms around Merlin's neck bringing him down to her for a kiss to last a lifetime. Every ounce of love and passion she felt moved from her heart into her lips, passing on to him. He moaned deep in the back of his throat in response, returning the fevered kiss with equal enthusiasm._

 _Resting their foreheads so their noses were nearly touching, Merlin softly declared, "Thou are my heart. Now and forever."_

" _And mine rests with you for all lifetimes" she replied honestly._

 _The young enchantress reluctantly removed herself from his arms. She moved toward the cave, pausing just at the entrance. Merlin did not notice her pause until he'd already crossed the threshold. Squeezing her eyes shut she murmured under her breath, "Crystals of enchantment bind, leaving magicks far behind. Seal this cave for all of time, lock away the heart of mine."_

 _Sparks of magick shimmered across the mouth of the cavern. Merlin, feeling it, swiftly turned around only to be thrown backwards from the entrance by a shot of electricity. He landed hard on his back, unmoving for a moment, and Morgan Le Fey felt her heart stop at the sight._

" _Merlin?"_

 _The man rose to a seated position with a groan, blinking away disorientation. Utterly heartbroken he met the tear stained face of the woman he loved. "Why? Why hast thou betrayed me?"_

" _Thine love would redeem me," she answered simply. "I have dark tidings to perform yet. Revenge must be wrought for mine family's honor. Arthur Pendragon must fall."_

 _Merlin's face hardened but his eyes revealed such bitter sorrow she could not hold his gaze. "If thou dost this deed you speak of, do not return here. Leave me to rot for the centuries it will be before I die. I rather decay in this tomb than see thine treacherous face again. I shall forswear thine love eternal."_

 _Heart broken Morgan Le Fay swore, "Forsooth, I cannot be the maiden thou desired. I pledge in another life, I shall make thee proud. I shall be the woman thou deserves. Until we meet again, My Love."_

The image melted, swirling into modern times. The moment she'd met Perry in Wyatt's study. Training sessions. The moment he'd opened up to her about his mother's and girlfriend's murders. So many conversations about family and morality. About how the world was, and how they wished it could be. Laughing as a demon vanquish smothered them in blue goo. Then, the memories paused on a statue garden in a park.

 _Bianca never expected to feel this way. She hadn't felt anything in so long she thought herself incapable of emotion anymore. It started as an innate need to protect him. Partially because it was her job, but mostly because he was sweet and innocent, and the light in him was one she never wanted extinguished. They had become friends. Again, partially because her orders were to gain his trust and sway him to his brother's side, but mostly because she found him disarmingly charming and trustworthy. Now? As time went on, the boy she'd started training started looking less like a boy five years her junior and more like a strikingly handsome man. A fact she noticed with increasing frequency and which did strange things to her normally strict and sensible nature._

" _How could I let this happen?" He gestured at the city around them. Smoke from fires drifted up in the distance. Alarms and cries cut through the air. What once was a bustling metropolis was now a veritable wasteland of despair._

" _Chris-" she said plaintively._

 _He spun on her, shaking his head. "-No. Don't give me that. I'm not being naive. I'm not a child for believing there is good and evil and wanting to protect the innocent. I'm a Halliwell. It's my birthright to fight evil, and I've buried my head in the sand too damn long. I'm done. I will not stand by and let evil destroy everything my family stood for . . . even if it's my family doing it."_

" _I wasn't going to say that," Bianca lightly argued._

 _He frowned at her, looking skeptical. "You weren't?"_

" _Do what you need to do, Chris," she replied. "Just be smart about it. If Wyatt finds out you're working against him, your status as his brother may not mean as much as it used to. Keep a low profile, and if you encounter one of his demons, you better make certain to vanquish them so they can't report back."_

 _The young man raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You're not going to argue with me? Tell me Wyatt's way is the only way? That I should stick by my brother's side?"_

" _Honestly?" she hedged, taking a seat on the marble bench. "I would prefer if you did. Right now, you're the one person on the planet Wyatt cares about, so staying loyal to him would assure you safety and comfort. Only, we've been friends long enough I know those mean little to you compared to your sense of right and wrong. Your sense of responsibility."_

 _Perry straddled the bench so he was facing toward her. Looking far more serious than someone his age should, he asked, "You won't tell Wyatt what I'm going to do?"_

" _No."_

" _Maybe it's best if we get you reassigned," he suggested. "I don't really need a bodyguard, and I hate to put you in danger by having to lie to him."_

 _Bianca smiled softly as she looked into his bright green eyes and saw the genuine concern there. As she had done often as of late, she became painfully aware of how close he was to her. She could practically feel his body heat. She swallowed thickly, trying to ignore the warmth steadily spreading through her body. She shook her head. "No. He would never agree, and besides, you need someone to watch your back."_

" _I don't want you to get caught in the crossfire," he argued. "I'd never forgive myself if you got hurt because of me."_

 _Something in his gaze and tone sparked the final match inside her, and Bianca was consumed with a need she had never known. Without her permission, her lips sought his. As she kissed him hard and thoroughly, she felt his body go stiff in surprise before melting into the embrace. He was a good kisser. Tender but passionate. She wanted more. Wanted to take advantage of him right here on this bench . . . but it was Chris. Sweet, innocent far too young for her Chris. Her friend. Her only friend._

 _Bianca pulled back. She met his confused gaze and let out a breath. "Stay safe. I'll see you soon."_

 _Then she shimmered away._

The memories came faster again. Tracking Perry all over kingdom come trying to keep him safe. Growing frustrated as he took on more dangerous demons and left it too obvious to Wyatt who was killing his men. Confronting Perry in the underworld then arguing because he'd discovered she was told by Wyatt to try to turn him. Having wild sex in the statue garden. An awkward conversation about not wanting a relationship. Hundreds of days and nights spent in each other's company. Realizing she loved him. Telling him. Planning his trip to the past. The moment he proposed to her in their spot, and she'd never been happier or more hopeful when she said yes. They snuck into the manor. Made love in the basement. She watched the man she love walk into a time portal. Wyatt captured her.

The images screeched to a halt as a scene played out slowly again.

 _Bianca awoke in a strange bedroom, lying on a soft mattress, which did little to help the throbbing pain in her head from where she'd been knocked out. Sore from battle, she rose stiffly to a seated position, jerking in shock as she spotted Lord Wyatt standing at the foot of the bed, arms cross and a lethal glint to his blue eyes._

" _You disappointment me, Bianca," he commented evenly._

" _How so?" she responded, surprising herself by the steadiness of her tone. Her heart was pounding so fast and hard she was sure he could hear it._

 _Wyatt made a tsking sound. "You should know better than to try to lie to me. Especially as I hear we will be family soon."_

 _Chris had only told his cousin about the engagement, and Bianca had no one to share happy news with since her mother's passing. It meant . . . Bianca's shoulder's slumped in horrible realization. She winced as she thought about how it would break Chris' heart when he found out. He was truly the last Halliwell standing._

" _Where is my brother?" Wyatt questioned lowly._

 _Bianca raised defiant brown eyes. "Somewhere not even you can reach him."_

" _Wrong answer."_

 _The Phoenix was immediately hurled from the bed and rammed into the wall with enough force she heard the distinct pop of her shoulder as it dislocated. She hissed in pain, but didn't get the chance to make another sound as an invisible hand clenched around her throat, squeezing until her eyes felt like they were going to pop. As her lungs burned and chest ached, she waited for unconsciousness to claim her. Just as the edges of her vision began to fade to grey, the pressure disappeared, and she gasped in air._

 _Wyatt had moved to tower over her. "I have no problem killing you, Bianca. Tell me what Chris has done."_

" _Then kill me and be done with it because I will never betray him," she replied fiercely._

 _The man set his jaw, eyes flashing dangerously. "We shall see how you feel after some time with my demons."_

The images zoomed by again. Weeks of torture. Months of solitude and mind games. She did not break. Wyatt eventually cast a spell to find out where Chris had gone. He used that knowledge to finally crack her. Said if she did not deliver his brother home and fully turned to his way of seeing things, he would send another assassin back to fetch his sibling's body. The thought of losing Chris, the idea of his death, destroyed her. Bianca would do anything to save him. She loved him. She prayed Chris would someday forgive her.

Everything went black, and Bianca realized she was staring at the back of her eyelids from a prone position. Her head throbbed painfully enough she felt queasy, and as she opened her eyes, she instantly squeezed them shut as the light made the sensation worse.

"Take it easy," a familiar voice coached. "I hit you with a pretty powerful potion. You're bound to be disoriented."

Cautiously opening her eyes while slowly rising to a seated position, she leaned back on her hands for support. It didn't take long for Bianca to realize she was trapped in a crystal cage in the attic of Halliwell Manor. Chris was standing over her, a potion in his hand. While his tone earlier had been almost gentle, his expression was hard, resolute in whatever he planned to do. She had no idea what had brought them to this point. Had someone healed her?

"I don't want to vanquish you," he said slowly, "but if Plan A didn't work, I will."

Her brown eyes instantly darted back to the potion in his hand. Apparently, it was Plan B. She asked slowly, "What exactly were you hoping to accomplish with Plan A?"

"Save you," he said simply.

Bianca sighed, feeling confused and exhausted and in no mood for games. Her eyes flitted up to his, narrowing. "From what exactly?"

"From whatever it is that turned you."

The former assassin flinched at the words. Despite dying . . . had she died? Nearly dying at least to try to save him from Wyatt and help him escape back to the past, he still didn't trust her anymore. "I'm not evil, Chris. You already saved me from that fate."

Chris moved closer to the cage, jade eyes sparking. "I have it on good authority you planned to do something to Wyatt. Something to turn him."

"Turn him?" she questioned. Flashes of herself in moments she couldn't quite understand or completely recall sprung to mind. A life where she wasn't forced to kill. Working with the elders. Spying on a demon named Nomed. He hit her with a potion . . . Oh no. "It's too late."

"What do you mean?"

Bianca, looking horrified, met his gaze and said, "This version of me was under a very powerful potion. She was being consumed by evil, wanting to destroy Wyatt to assure good magic fell with him. She teamed up with Barbas. She tricked Wyatt into casting a spell to make him witness firsthand . . ." Bianca's breath hitched as the reality of her words broke her heart. She pushed down her feelings, forcing herself to finish, "Perry sleeping with Casey. Then Barbas twisted his mind."

"Oh God," Chris breathed. "Casey and Perry had sex? I can't . . . how could she do that to Wyatt?"

"Barbas was in the past," Bianca explained. "He manipulated it."

"Her white hair," Chris realized.

Bianca nodded. "Chris, Wyatt is on the brink right now. You have to find him before he does something that pushes him over the edge. Once he crosses that line . . ." She left the words unspoken.

Pain suddenly overwhelmed Chris' senses. He could hear Bianca saying his name in concern, but he couldn't focus on it. His chest had grown tight, and he felt like he was suffocating. He dropped to his knees gasping, his vision starting to blur as he realized the pain was not his own.

Someone he loved was dying.

TBC. . .

Next time: The big climax! Whoohoo!


	31. Thanks for the Memories

Thank you so much to RaSulli, gabyhyatt, and Anthony for taking the time to review and let me know your thoughts. This part was particularly difficult to write, so it helped me push through to have your encouragement :)

Okie dokie, folks: The Big Climax!

Chapter 31

Molly had been talking to Phoebe about possible honeymoon locations. How with the ability to orb, she and Chris could save a ton on airfare and splurge on hotels and other amenities. Molly didn't have the heart to point out the fact she and Chris couldn't really go anywhere with Casey so sick. They needed to care for Lucky and make sure their friend was okay. Molly wasn't confident they'd ever get a real honeymoon. Not with the luck they had. She'd count herself fortunate if nothing ruined the wedding tomorrow.

No sooner had the thought struck her than she felt a horrible emptiness fill a spot in her mind normally reserved for her youngest charge. At the same time she heard Piper gasp and Leo cry out Lucky's name. Without pause, Molly ran toward them, her heart nearly stopping at the sight of her soon-to-be stepson unconscious in his grandfather's arms.

The whitelighter immediately raised her hands over the little boy, but the golden glow didn't spring to life. Her hands grew shaky as horrible dread slicked through her veins. Seeing the normally energetic boy looking ghostly pale and still, Molly's eyes began to burn as her chest spasmed hard. "Why isn't it working? What happened?"

"Lucky is finely tuned to magic," Leo answered slowly, the struggle to stay calm visible on his face. "He felt something too much for his young mind to handle, so it shut down to protect him. I think he'll be okay. He just needs to rest."

Piper's brown eyes were shining as she looked to her husband. "What could he have meant, Leo? About the thread of the Warren line? What's happening?"

"I'm not sure," Leo answered. Scooping the child fully into his arms he announced "I'm going to go put him to bed. I'll stay with him and make sure he's okay. Someone should let Chris and Casey know though."

Molly glanced around the kitchen only now noticing her friend was no longer present. She also reached out to sense for Chris only to find he was up in the attic for some reason. She hadn't been too concerned when he and Wyatt were missing from the party earlier, assuming they were dealing with a demon, but now, anxiety filled her. Why would he be up there alone? Why did Casey, and now she realized Perry too, leave?

As Leo carried his grandson out of the room, Piper looked to Molly. "Sweetheart, is it okay with you if we forgo the evening festivities? I don't think Chris will be up for it when he finds out about Lucky, and we need to find out what Lucky saw and deal with it immediately."

"Agreed."

Andy who had been listening and observing everything with the skills his former life as an inspector had taught him, moved swiftly from against the wall to Prue's side. He whispered something in her ear, which caused her to look over to Piper with worried eyes. When his sometimes girlfriend then returned her attention to him with a nod, Andy went up in a twister of lights.

Prue crossed the space to Piper and Molly. "Andy told me what Lucky said. He's going to go check with the Elders about any possible new threats. In the meantime, I think Coop and Henry should take the kids home, and we should start researching."

"Way ahead of you, Sister," Paige said as she joined the circle. "Henry is telling the kiddos they're leaving as we speak. Pretty sure they're going to be none too happy about that fact, but they're teenagers, so it's par for the course, right?"

It seemed Phoebe had come to the same conclusion as she gave Coop a kiss before joining her sisters and Molly while he went to break the news to their girls. When she reached the group she held up her hands in question, "Alright, People, what's going on?"

Molly was about to answer when she was struck with a horrible, blinding pain in her chest. Her hand instantly went up to rub it, her eyes squeezing shut as tears laced her lashes. Overwhelming fear and agony would have dropped the whitelighter to her knees if Paige and Prue hadn't steadied her. Behind the agony she was experiencing, Molly could feel Casey's energy. It was the pain a whitelighter felt when their charge was dying.

Panicked, Molly didn't wait for the others or even explain what was happening. She orbed immediately to where she sensed the other woman. When she materialized out of the cloud of light, she nearly choked on her tears. Casey had fallen out of her wheelchair onto the dewy grass of the garden. Her oxygen mask was askew on her face, one hand reaching out in front of her as though she'd tried to rise and failed.

Molly ran to her friend's side, getting on her knees gently rolling Casey to her side. She smiled in relief through her tears as Casey's eyes fluttered half open and the woman took something too shallow and raspy to be considered a breath. Still, at least she was alive. Barely. "Hey. Hold on okay. Everything is going to be fine. Just hold on."

"Try-ing," came a voice so deprived of air it was barely audible.

Instinctively, Molly raised her hands over her friend trying to heal her, but for the second time tonight, her powers failed her. Unable to help, her fear cried out for someone who could. "Wyatt!"

A moment later orb lights appeared in the cool night air. Wyatt stepped out of them, his eyes landing on his girlfriend's prone form. His lips parted slightly and a hint of shock and pain filtered across his otherwise stoney features.

"Wyatt," Molly called frantically. "Hurry. Do you have the potion?"

The Twice Blessed moved slowly forward and bent to one knee. He pulled a vial out of the breast pocket of his white jacket. He put one hand on the side of Casey's face, getting her attention. "Do you want to do this? Do you want to bind yourself to me forever?"

"Y-es," Casey forced out, wincing at the pain it caused.

Wyatt took a breath, his blue eyes returning just a moment back to their bright cerulean. For just a moment, he looked like his old self again. A man in love and willing to do anything to save his soulmate. Molly let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding as she saw the transition. Part of her worried he wouldn't be able to forgive her in time.

All four Charmed Ones came running into the garden jerking to a stop as they realized what was happening. Piper gasped at the sight of the girl she'd considered a daughter lying on the grass, moments from death. She put her hand to her mouth and turned her face away only to have Prue instantly pull her into a hug. Paige shook her head, her brown eyes growing misty. Phoebe put her hand to her heart and held her breath. None of them knew what potion Wyatt was giving Casey, or what he hoped to accomplish, but they prayed it meant salvation for the girl they'd watched grow up. The mother of their grandson and great nephew. The love of Wyatt's life.

After Casey had swallowed the concoction, orb lights filtered into the garden forming into Chris. He raced to her side, skidding on his knees next to her and Molly. He put his hands on his friend's face, his eyes burning as he saw how very near death she was hovering. His voice was cracking as he said, "No, no, no. If you were this bad why did they let you leave the hospital?"

"A. . .M . . .A," Casey choked out, wheezing in painful spasm at the effort.

"Against medical advice," Molly translated, hand going up to her mouth as tears ran down her face.

Chris shook his head. "Why? Why would you do that?"

"Didn't . . . wanna . . . die there." Her face morphed to a grimace and as she tried to take in air it was nothing but a thin squeak. True panic set into her eyes then. Tears ran from her lashes as the woman realized this was really it. She had moments left.

Chris looked up at his brother to see how his sibling was faring. What he saw looking back at him made his blood freeze in his heart. He swallowed hard. "Wy?"

 _The one who took her from you_ , Barbas' astral form hissed into The Twice Blessed's ear.

"You," came a growl so menacing Piper, Paige and Phoebe all shared shocked looks. They'd only ever heard their son and nephew sound like that once before, and it sent a chill down their spines thinking of that time. The time Wyatt had been turned evil. Prue hadn't been present for that event, but a coil formed in her belly anyway.

Chris straightened, Bianca and Lucky's warnings ringing in his mind. It couldn't be too late. Wyatt was not evil. Wyatt would never hurt him. He kept repeating the phrases over and over, but the look on his big brother's face was so full of hate it made his heart start racing and stomach churn.

"Wyatt," Molly said softly, confused. "Aren't you going to drink the potion? It won't work if you don't."

 _She never really loved you. You were just a placeholder._

The Twice Blessed looked down at Casey who was struggling to keep her eyes open. "And bind myself to this faithless whore? I think not."

Piper gasped. "Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, what did you just call her?"

The blond rose to his feet, eyeing his mother unfeelingly. "I called her a faithless whore. Honestly, Mother, you aren't that old yet. I would've assumed you could hear me quite plainly."

"What the _hell_ is the matter with you?" his mother roared, moving to head toward her son.

Prue caught her arms, halting her in her tracks. "Piper, don't. He's not himself right now."

Phoebe grabbed her head and swayed on her feet, nearly falling if not for Paige catching her arms. Tears filled her soft brown eyes as she gazed at her oldest nephew. "Oh, God. The fear, pain and anger. . . Wyatt . . ."

Wyatt glared coldly down at Casey who could no longer breathe at all, gasping fruitlessly, eyes drowning in pain and guilt and fear. Staring into her eyes, he ignored the mortal panic he saw in them, spitting out cruelly, "You fuck my brother behind my back and you expect me to save your worthless life? You are trash. Incapable of loyalty. Let's show all these sobbing people the truth shall we? See if they'll miss you when they know what a betraying slut you are."

With the wave of a hand a projection filled the yard of Perry and Casey having sex in the backroom of P3. Horrified, Piper immediately turned away from the image of her son doing that, wincing as her heart broke for her oldest, and confusion and disappointment filled her at the fact Perry and Casey had betrayed Wyatt in such a way. Phoebe gasped in pain, feeling everything despite the empath blocking potions everyone had taken. Overwhelmed, she lost consciousness, nearly bringing Paige down with her. Paige was almost grateful for the distraction as she sunk to the ground with her sister, making sure she was okay rather than seeing the disturbing images. Prue could only shake her head, eyes narrowed at Wyatt for purposefully hurting his family this way. Molly flushed and stared at Wyatt in wide-eyed astonishment. Chris had pulled Casey into his arms and was rocking her, whispering soothing words into her ear.

Casey's watery gaze was on Wyatt. She let out a pained sob, rasping, "'M . . . so . . . sor-ry."

With another wave of Wyatt's hand the image died. He moved to squat next to Casey. His hand gently caressed her face. "I loved you with all I was." He suddenly squeezed her face hard enough she cried out. "You destroyed me."

Beating Chris to it, Molly ripped Wyatt's hand away from the vulnerable woman's face. "Stop this. This isn't you, and nothing is what it seems. What happened between Casey and Perry was manipulated. Barbas tricked them and used his powers on them."

Wyatt turned slowly to look at her, frowning. "Excuse me?"

 _She lies. They all lie to you. They don't care about you._

"Wyatt, please, she loves you," Molly said.

The Twice Blessed sneered at her, "I thought you were my friend, but you lied to me. You hid this from me."

Chris noticed Casey's eyes had slipped closed, and she'd gone horribly still in his arms. His eyes burned and blurred. He stroked her face, trying to coax her back to life. "Babe? Casey? Please, don't do this. Don't leave me and Lucky."

There was no response. Her body remained deathly still.

"Stop touching her!" Wyatt bellowed suddenly. "Haven't you done enough? You took the one thing I ever wanted for myself. Always I tried to do the right thing. Be the right person. The good man and better witch. And for what? So my own brother can steal the only woman I have ever loved? I wish to hell you would have died in the past."

Chris frowned, remembering what Lucky had told him. He swallowed nervously, recognizing the look in Wyatt's eyes as one he'd seen his brother use on demons. "I'm not Perry, Wyatt. It's me - Chris."

 _He's lying. Trying to hide behind your real brother. Make him pay._

Before he knew what was happening, Chris was flying through the air. He heard Paige call his name and reappeared on his feet in front of Casey and Molly. He immediately took on a defensive stance. His heart was hammering painfully in his chest. He wasn't stupid. He knew he didn't have the power to stand up to Wyatt, and the idea of trying was terrifying. Especially knowing how the fight would likely end based on his son's warnings.

As if reading his thoughts, Wyatt laughed darkly. "You really think you can beat me, Perry?"

The sisters stepped forward then, shoulder to shoulder and staring down Wyatt with confidence behind their sorrowful, regretful gazes. Piper's eyes were particularly shiny as she regarded her eldest son and warned, "Wyatt, stop or we will make you."

Wyatt laughed again, the sound twisted and cold. "Auntie Prue isn't charmed anymore and dear Auntie Phoebe seems rather disposed at the moment. You're no match for me."

"Oooh, yeah, okay," Prue said, eyes narrowed in anger. "That's it."

Charging her eldest nephew, Prue leaped into the air aiming to kick him in the chest. It never landed as Wyatt rolled his eyes and flicked his fingers at her sending her flying backward with a yelp into the side of the house where she hit hard and fell in a heap to the ground unconscious.

In response, Piper flicked her hands in rapid succession sending blast after blast at her baby boy. He blocked and deflected, staggering back a few paces under the heavy assault from the second most powerful witch alive.

Meanwhile, Paige had quietly called for the crystals from the attic and orbed over to Chris' side. Each taking two and knowing they only had one shot, they gave a nod and disappeared in orbs at the same time.

"I guess this means Chris is your favorite son," Wyatt baited. "So much for a mother's love being unconditional and equal."

The words hit their mark, and Piper hesitated, sorrow and guilt striking her more fiercely than an energy ball. "Wyatt, I do love you. I love you too much to let you do this."

Taking the opening, Wyatt deflected one of her own blasts back at her. The energy hit Piper soundly in the chest, catapulting her backwards. She landed hard on the ground, skidding a few feet on the wet grass before coming to a terribly still stop.

Molly shrieked her future mother-in-law's name and raced to her side intending to heal her.

Simultaneously, Chris orbed in behind Wyatt and Paige in front. They immediately and in unison placed their crystals on the ground, trapping Wyatt in the magical cage.

"You really think these will hold me?" Wyatt sneered. He held out his hands and a blast of blue energy flew out of them exploding the magical bindings of the crystal cage outward. The force of the blast took Paige clear off her feet, and before she could orb herself out, she hit the wall of the house, completely out cold.

Seeing the blast heading for Casey next, Molly was forced to abandon Piper before she had a chance to heal her and orbed back to Casey's side, orbing them both out just long enough for the energy wave to pass by them before rematerializing in the same spot.

When the blast was done, Chris felt his blood boiling with rage. Wyatt had effectively just knocked out the Charmed Ones, his own flesh and blood, and nearly hit Molly and Casey too. He could have killed them. It was all too much. His friend could not be dead. His brother could not be evil.

Rising to his feet, Chris put his whole body into throwing out his hand. It was the most powerful telekinetic blast he'd ever sent, and he'd directed entirely at his brother. The strength of it was enough to send every piece of lawn furniture flying to splinters, the grass ripped from its roots. Wyatt went soaring through the air twenty feet landing with a hard thud. He did not immediately rise.

Chris let out a shaky breath, dropping back to his knees next to Casey and Molly. He met his lover's eyes, and Molly sadly shook her head. Needing to know for himself, Chris put two fingers on Casey's neck. Nothing. He choked on air. Shaking his head, tears pricked the back of his eyes. His mind splintered into thousands of horrible thoughts. His best friend was dead. Lucky's mother was dead. What was he going to do? How would raise their son without her? How could he possibly tell Lucky he'd failed to save his mother?

"Chris!" Molly screamed as she was thrown backwards, sliding across the dirt.

Her warning came too late. A blast of energy sent Chris flying end over end into the gazebo. His back hit one of the support beams with a horrible crack. He cried out as pain like a knife cutting straight through his spine ripped into his lower back. Then, the pain was gone . . . so was all the feeling in his legs as he laid on the steps of the gazebo.

Molly screamed again and rushed to his side. She took his head in her hands, tears streaming down her face. "Chris? Oh god, Chris?"

Wyatt rose to his feet. The anger radiating from him was making his magic swirl dangerously around him. The wheelchair went careening off into the side of the house with a crash. Rain started gushing from the sky as thunder boomed and lightning cracked. The gazebo shook and nearly pulled free of its supports. Red energy began pulsing around The Twice Blessed.

Chris' eyes fluttered open, and he saw what was happening. While his brother's emotions were wreaking havoc on his powers, Chris found he couldn't move. He was pretty sure he was paralyzed from the waist down. Lucky's warning had come too late. This was it. Wyatt really was going to kill him. He looked to his fiancee, saw her loving hazel eyes blurred with tears and felt his heart spasm. He had to save her. "I love you. Tell Lucky I will always be with him, and I love him."

Molly fiercely shook her head, knowing what those words meant and refusing to accept them. "Chris, no."

With the last of his reserve strength, Chris raised his hand and orbed Molly and Casey up to the safety of the attic just as a blast of red energy came hurtling toward him.

Only it never struck.

Bianca shimmered onto the steps next to him, put a hand on his shoulder and shimmered them out just before the gazebo was reduced to ashes. They reappeared in the attic with Molly and Casey. Rising smoothly to her feet, Bianca looked down at Chris for a moment, cataloging his wounds. Letting out a huff, she looked over her shoulder to Molly, directing, "Don't heal him right away. This fight isn't his. He'll get himself killed."

Then, the Phoenix was gone again.

Chris was about to tell Molly she better heal him and quick, but his words were lost as a glowing figure kneeled down next to him. He frowned craning his neck to see who it was and felt his heart sink into his stomach. Tears instantly filled his eyes as he struggled to deny what he was seeing.

Casey's spirit smiled gently down at him. "Take good care of our son, Chris. I love you both."

Then she was gone.

000

After leaving Casey's side, Perry had intended to confront Wyatt. He needed to face his brother and know once and for all if The Twice Blessed was truly destined to turn evil in every life. It certainly seemed that way. Perhaps it was being born over The Nexus. Just like Aunt Phoebe, Wyatt could so easily swing from light to dark. Just like his mother and Aunt Paige, it would be up to Perry and Chris to save or stop him.

Following Wyatt's orb trails was easy enough, but what was unusual was how he sensed another magical presence on the same path. As an elder, Perry had begun to realize the full extent of his new powers, and it seemed he could sometimes pick up on the remnants of magic. Whoever was following his brother was a demon. What kind or who, he couldn't tell. He was half-tempted to go fetch his nephew. Lucky had an uncanny ability to read magic, and the little boy might be able to unravel the mystery. Though, his parents would probably kill Perry for dragging him into the underworld, so he decided not.

An instinct told Perry not to disregard the other presence though. Casey's utter faith in Wyatt was rubbing off it seemed. Maybe there was foul play involved in his sibling's ominous behavior. Why else would this dark energy be following his every move? It had to keep a steady connection with Wyatt to prevent him from catching on that he was being infected or manipulated. It would have to be someone incredibly powerful to be able to magically manipulate The Twice Blessed. Very few demons were around in this time with that kind of power. The only one Perry could think of was . . . Barbas.

As the name struck him everything fell into place in Perry's mind. Casey had told him Barbas had been manipulating them in the past, and the demon had likely gotten to him at Wyatt's apartment the night he'd made a pass at her. He'd known that. He'd gotten so distracted by Bianca's appearance and Casey's illness he'd completely forgotten about The Demon of Fear. Their family's oldest and most powerful nemesis was after them, obviously trying to get he and Casey to betray Wyatt in order to manipulate his brother, and it had worked. Now, he was targeting Wyatt to increase the pain and fear and anger. Casey had been right.

It changed everything. Perry put all his focus on finding Barbas. If he could stop The Demon of Fear, he could save Wyatt without anyone getting hurt. His brother wasn't destined to be evil, but it seemed Perry was destined to stop his corruption yet again.

Using several of his demonic contacts, Perry was able to learn where Barbas had been lurking as of late. He orbed in several chambers from the lair not wanting to give away his presence. Tapping into his powers as an Elder, he cloaked himself in invisibility. Using the skills he'd learned from Bianca, he moved like one of the shifting shadows silent and unnoticed by all he passed.

Pressing his back against the wall just around the corner of the cavern Barbas was rumored to be staying, Perry listened for any sign of the Demon of Fear. After a moment, he heard a voice, slippery and twisted and evil.

"He's lying," Barbas was saying, his eyes closed as though in meditation. "Trying to hide behind your real brother. Make him pay."

Perry had never developed astral projection, but he recognized the signs of it. Cold dread formed in the bottom of his chest. If Barbas was using an astral form for his power of suggestion, Wyatt would never know, and if it was Wyatt being manipulated this very moment, which Perry was almost certain was the case, the words indicated Barbas was pitting The Twice Blessed against Chris. It also meant Wyatt hated him enough to want to hurt him, but Perry was less concerned with that fact. He'd been on the opposing side of Wyatt for years. He could handle it. Chris on the other hand . . . Chris was soft. Chris was likely going to get very hurt or worse.

Perry knew the first thing he needed to do to save his twin was break the hold this demon had on Wyatt. Stepping around the corner, arms raised, he let lightning dance from his fingers. The powerful energy zipped through the air with a crackle, zapping Barbas with enough force the demon was immediately dropped to his knees in excruciating pain.

"You're an elder," he hissed. "You can't kill me."

"I'm not a very good elder," Perry shot back.

Barbas writhed in agony but his face was smug. "You're too late. Your greatest fear has already come to bear. You have lost your family for good."

"Then I have nothing to lose," Perry returned coldly. He did not let up, striking the demon with a steady stream of pure power. He would vanquish Barbas for everything he'd done. For manipulating Casey. For turning Wyatt. For taking away Perry's second chance at a normal life.

Eyes growing wide, Barbas realized he was unable to latch onto a single glimmer of trepidation in the young man. Without fear to feed him, Barbas knew the elder's attack was too much to withstand. He raised his hands, letting out one last primal scream before erupting into a column of fire which blasted up to the ceiling of the cave before dispersing into oblivion.

Perry lowered his hands, his breathing ragged with the exertion of using so much magic. He wiped his brow with the back of his arm taking a moment to appreciate the fact he'd just single handedly vanquished one of his family's most legendary foes. He'd come a long way.

Still, he had further yet to go.

Orbing into the garden at the manor, Perry surveyed the situation quickly, analyzing everything with detachment learned from war. The gazebo was gone. Unless one counted the drifting ashes in the air. Casey's wheelchair was in a metal clump off to the side, obviously damaged from a telekinetic blast. Same with all the grass and plants in the area. The Charmed Ones were down, each one lying unconscious on the ground. None of them were dead or dying. He could sense that much. Knowing they weren't allowed him to push his feelings about their injuries aside. He couldn't afford to be distracted.

His effort to remain focused went to hell the moment the air shimmered next to him, and Bianca appeared at his side. A Bianca whose relaxed stance belied the tense readiness of her muscles, indicating a level of fighting skill and cunning she had not previously possessed. A Bianca who had immediately taken in the situation in exactly the same war wary way he had minutes before. More importantly a Bianca who edged a look at him, which had the deepest love imaginable. This was his Bianca. The love of his life. Returned.

"Bianca?" he breathed, his heart catching in his throat.

She grinned, softly teasing, "Miss me?"

Before Perry could respond, Wyatt stepped out of the shadows to stand just in front of them. The cold fury in his eyes was so familiar it broke Perry's heart. This was a Wyatt he knew too. One he'd died to stop from existing. He also was returned.

"You took her from me," Wyatt accused. His hands were clenching and unclenching, and the ground was starting to shake below them. "You betrayed me."

Ignoring the strong sense of deja vu, Perry calmly argued, "I didn't take her from you Wyatt. Casey loves you."

"Don't lie to me." The Twice Blessed threw out his hand sending a powerful telekinetic assault at them.

Perry and Bianca orbed and shimmered out of the way respectively. When they reformed, Bianca said carefully, "Listen to me, Wyatt. The evil previously infecting me demanded I destroy you because you are the most powerful source of good the world has ever known. To do that, I put a spell on you at the hospital. What you saw and heard wasn't real."

Perry shot a sharp look at her. "You did what? Bianca, what did you make him think happened?"

"Not the time, Chris," she admonished through the side of her mouth. Encouraged by the fact Wyatt hadn't attacked them again, she continued, "I was also working with Nomed, so I know for a fact, he used Barbas to manipulate Casey. It's why her hair is white. His magic did such a number on her it permanently scarred her. He's been manipulating you too."

The Twice Blessed's face softened, uncertainty forming.

"Cast a spell to show you the truth," Perry suggested. "If you don't believe us, you can at least believe your own magic."

"So I can be trapped watching you have sex with the woman I love again?" Wyatt bellowed, enraged. He threw a blast of energy at Perry, who countered it with lightning.

The powerful magics were locked evenly between them pulsing like a heartbeat until the intensity became too much, and an explosion blasted out from the middle sending all three of them flying backwards to land in hard skids on the ground.

Perry, flashing to an image of Bianca impaled, immediately turned to make sure she was okay. He let out a breath of relief to find her rising to her feet. Knowing she was unhurt, he didn't feel guilty letting his frustration and anger take over. Rising to his feet, he asked her hotly, "Just what the hell did you to do him?"

"I trapped him in the memory of you and her in P3," she answered. "He saw the whole thing."

The Elder looked horrified. "That's seriously twisted."

"I know."

"I can't believe you mentally tortured him like that," Perry said, disgusted. "It's sick."

Bianca shot back, "I was evil at the time. Excuse me for being good at it unlike all the other demons your family has gone up against."

"Are you actually proud of that fact right now?"

"Baby, no, of course not," she replied, looking guilty. "I just meant-"

"-Are you two quite finished?" Wyatt cut in. He folded his arms over his chest. "I'd like to get on with this fight if you don't mind."

Perry licked his lips trying to think of a solution. He knew in a battle of magic even with Bianca's fighting skills they would lose. They had to find a way to fix the damage evil had wrought on Wyatt's mind. Finally, his strategic mind came up with the answer. "Bianca, I'm not a witch anymore, so it's up to you to show him the truth. Make him see what's been done to him. All of it."

As Wyatt hurled an energy ball at them, they both dove to opposite sides to avoid being hit. Wyatt sent a barrage of them at the phoenix, who deftly flipped, rolled and shimmered out of harm's way. Wyatt knew she couldn't dodge and come up with a spell, so it would be up to Perry to buy her time.

Knowing it worked last time, Perry charged Wyatt rushing him in exactly the same way he had during their confrontation in the attic in a different future.

"Have you lost your mind?" Wyatt asked as he easily tossed Perry away and threw him to the ground. He then reached out with his telekinesis and lifted his brother up into the air several feet off the ground.

Trying to keep his sibling's focus on him, Perry baited, "You're really predictable, you know?" Just as he knew his brother would, Wyatt reacted by tightening his magic's grasp on his throat. As Perry felt the the familiar sensation of being telekinetically choked, he looked to Bianca and gasped out, "Any time now."

"I call upon the corners four," Bianca began, "to show the Twice Blessed truth once more. Let him see the evil works done and bring back to light this Charmed Son."

Wyatt gasped as his mind was pulled inward. He saw Barbas' astral form whispering in Perry and Casey's ears in the attic in the past, causing their kiss. Saw Gideon use memory dust on Casey then leave only to have Barbas take advantage of her vulnerability trying to convince her Perry was her true love. Wyatt saw how she struggled against that memory manipulation, physically pained as her subconscious argued her soulmate was Wyatt. Then he watched as Barbas manipulated the incident at P3 and later fed off of Casey's fear, permanently changing her bangs white. He witnessed Nomed using Lucky to spread doubt. Saw Bianca cast her spell and learned what had really happened and was said between Casey and Perry at the hospital that fateful day he found out they'd slept together. Wyatt then watched Barbas manipulate him over and over every day since.

Perry dropped to the ground as Wyatt's hold disappeared. He saw his strong, all-powerful brother crumple to his knees, his face twisted in horrible guilt and despair. He half crawled to his sibling's side, tentatively putting a hand on Wyatt's shoulder.

Blue eyes soaked in pain looked to Perry. "I'm a monster. I'm destined to be evil and hurt everyone I love."

"You're not a monster," Perry countered softly. "You were manipulated by evil, but it's over now. Your mind is your own again."

Suddenly remembering what he'd done to his family, Wyatt's face morphed to abject horror. He scrambled to his feet, rushing to his mother's side and healing her. He repeated the action with each of his aunts. When they were all healed and starting to rise, Wyatt reached out to sense for Chris, knowing his brother had been most severely injured. Finally connecting with Chris, Wyatt felt sick and physically stumbled under the weight of his brother's feelings. The pain and sorrow was indescribable.

"Chris," he breathed orbing out.

Perry caught Bianca's gaze. As they had often done in the past, the pair shared a silent communication. Gratitude. Relief. Forgiveness. Love. A silent understanding that no matter what they'd done to each other, no matter what they'd both been through, they would work through it together. Just not now. As seemed to be the story of their lives, the timing wasn't right yet. They had more pressing matters to settle.

Nearly simultaneously, Perry orbed and Bianca shimmered after Wyatt. They materialized in the attic to find Molly sobbing on the sofa with her face in hands. Chris, whose legs were strangely still and frozen in an odd angle, was sprawled out on the floor. His face was buried in Casey's neck, his hand stroking the other side of her face and hair as he desperately mumbled the word 'no' over and over.

Wyatt's legs gave out as he realized what had happened. In a heap on the attic floor, his breathing became too quick and shallow. Tears leaped from his lashes as he stared at the corpse of the woman he loved. The woman he'd said such horrible things to as she lie dying. When she needed him most, he'd been the faithless one. He could have saved her. He could have spent the rest of eternity loving her, and having her love in return. Instead, he let evil win.

Perry felt his chest constrict painfully. His eyes welled with tears and his throat felt too thick to allow air in and out. He kept flashing to the first time he'd lost Casey. How he'd watched her die. How'd he gotten her back only to lose her all over again. He turned his head away from the sight of her lifeless body and felt Bianca take his hand giving it gentle squeeze.

Chris looked up at the sound of their arrival. Face drenched in tears, eyes bloodshot, he looked first to Wyatt, obviously checking if his brother was sane again or not, then shifted his focus to Perry. He looked at them both with eyes resembling scorching emeralds as he declared with all the anger and grief he felt, "She's dead. My best friend. My son's mother. She's lost to us forever, and I blame you both."

TBC . . .


	32. Fade Into You

**Oh my goodness! So many wonderful reviews for that last part! I can't thank you guys enough for your comments - sise87, weiliya, Anthony, and gabyhyatt. They truly keep me going :)**

 **Note: The lyrics in italic are not mine. They are from the song,** ** _Fade Into You_** **by the television show Nashville. If you haven't heard it before, I find it hauntingly beautiful, but it could just be me ;)**

Chapter 32

 _If you were a window and I was the rain,_

 _I'd pour myself out and wash off your pain._

 _I'd fall like a tear, so your light could shine through._

 _Then I'd just fade into you._

Dying was not pleasant. It had been terrifying and excruciating. Being dead on the other hand, wasn't really so bad. Casey felt lighter. Freer. The burden of her life was no longer chaining her to the guilt, loss and fear she'd been feeling for so long. It was over.

It'd been a strange sensation seeing her body lying on the floor of the attic and not being part of it anymore. She thought she would panic, but oddly, she felt calm in resignation. The hard part was seeing Chris in so much pain, tears falling down his face because of her. For some reason she flashed to the moment they first met.

 _"I's Chris," a toddler with a mop of brown hair and striking green eyes introduced himself. "Was your name?"_

 _A pigtailed, two year old Casey blushed shyly, immediately moving to hide behind her father's legs, wrapping her arms around one and burying her face._

 _Lorenzo laughed lightly, the sound warm. Gently removing his daughter's arms and pushing her forward, he squatted behind her encouraging, "Está bien, Lucerito. Está bien. Es un chico muy amable. Será un amigo nuevo."_

 _The little girl bit her lip looking back at her father unsurely. When he nodded again, she moved closer to Chris looking up at him and feeling better when he gave her a big smile. She finally, softly answered, "Casey."_

 _"Wanna pway?"_

 _She nodded with a small smile, and the little boy took her hand, dragging her behind him as he excitedly led her to the Mommy and Me classroom. She had to run to keep up, and soon, they were racing and laughing. Friends for the rest of their lives as it turned out. Or the rest of hers anyway . . ._

Chris had always been the brave one. The one to lead the way to adventure. From that first moment when he'd taken her hand and pulled her behind him, Casey knew she would follow him anywhere. Only now, she was going on a journey without him. One she prayed he wouldn't be following her on any time soon. He needed to take care of Lucky for her.

Lucky. If she still had a heart, it would be breaking at the thought of leaving her child. Causing him pain. She loved her son more than anything in this world and surely the next. She had since the moment he'd orbed into her arms at the hospital . . .

 _Lying in her hospital bed, Casey saw the tiniest orb lights she'd ever seen swirling toward her. Barely having the wits to catch the magical child in her arms, the new mother was astounded as the baby calmly stared up at her with deep green eyes. He blinked sleepily, his little head resting against her chest until he drifted peacefully to sleep._

 _Tears formed in Casey's eyes as she stared down at the infant. Her son. Chris had been right: Lucas Halliwell was the most beautiful child she'd ever laid eyes on. The little boy was by far the best thing she'd ever done, and the miracle and awe of it struck her almost painfully as she held him close to her strongly beating heart._

 _Chris came skidding to a stop outside her door, his face full of a kind of relief as he spotted the baby, who had disappeared on him from the NICU. Then, his mouth curled up into one of his famous grins. "Guess this means you're already the favorite parent."_

 _"He missed the sound of my heartbeat," Casey softly explained._

 _Chris moved into the room, taking a seat on the edge of the bed next to her. His hand went to lightly caress the tiny head of his newborn son. His other hand went to the cheek of the boy's mother. Voice full of awe, he said, "Look what we did."_

 _Eyes wet with joy, Casey said, "He's so perfect."_

 _The young man met his former lover's eyes and in the moment they remained locked, an understanding and binding promise crossed between them. This child– their child– would always come first and no matter what, they would love and protect him for the rest of their lives._

Knowing she had only moments before an Angel of Death claimed her, she'd said goodbye to Chris and willed herself to Lucky. The little boy was asleep with Leo sitting watch over him. As a mortal, Leo couldn't see her spirit and did not react to her presence.

The mother moved to her son's side, lovingly looking down on him. She wished she could hold him one more time. Wished she could kiss his forehead. Only she couldn't. She wasn't a summoned spirit with the ability to be corporeal. She was formless light and energy. Still, she bent to whisper in her little boy's ear, " _Te amo, Lucerito_. I will always be watching over you."

"I'm afraid it's time," a kindly voice remarked from behind her.

Casey turned to find an elderly man standing in the doorway with the most sympathetic face she'd ever seen. His dark eyes were incredibly gentle but belied his middle-aged appearance with a breadth of knowledge and experience only earned by immortal beings. If she had the ability to swallow nervously, she would've in his presence. "You're my Angel of Death?"

"I prefer to be called Clarence," the man responded. He extended a hand toward her. "Are you ready?"

"Do I have a choice?"

Clarence offered a weak smile. "Afraid not."

Casey looked back to Lucky one last time, soaking in everything about her child. The way his bangs flopped over his forehead. The sweet, youthful look of his face, especially in sleep. When he suddenly thickly blinked open his eyes, her hand went to her heart at the sight of the stunning green she adored.

"Momma?" Lucky questioned groggily as he tried to sit up.

Leo was out of his chair and at his side in an instant. "Hey, Buddy, take it slow. You gave me and your Grams quite the scare earlier."

Casey turned to the Angel, fearful. "Scare? Clarence, what is he talking about? What happened to my son?"

"Not yours to worry about any more," Clarence told her gently. "Your time here is done."

Before Casey could vehemently argue how her son would always be hers to love and worry over, she heard the snap of Clarence's fingers and everything went white. When the all consuming white left her eyes, she found she was no longer in the living world. She was still in Lucky's room at The Manor, but everything was grey and empty. Or so she thought . . .

" _Hola, Lucerito_ ," a voice she'd longed to hear for seven years greeted her.

Almost afraid to believe it true, Casey slowly spun around. Her hand flew to her mouth and if she had tears to shed they would have been pouring down her face. She breathed, " _Papí."_

000

 _If I was a shadow and you were a street,_

 _the cobblestone midnight is where we first meet._

 _Til the lights flickered out, we dance with the moon._

 _Then I'd just fade into you._

Molly slipped off the couch and moved to heal her fiance, knowing now the battle was over, and he wasn't at risk of doing anything to get himself killed. Once the healing light had fixed her lover's broken back, the whitelighter put her hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him with her touch. It didn't work.

Chris was on his feet in an instant, raging against his older brother. "You stupid, selfish son of a bitch. I will never forgive you for what you've done tonight. You disrespected my son's mother _as she was dying_. The horrible things you called her, the way you hurt her, how you played that image for our entire family tarnishing what will now just be their memories of her. Most of all, for letting your damn wounded pride be more important than her life."

Wyatt winced, tears pouring down his face in guilt and shame and loss. He tried to speak to tell Chris just how much he agreed, but found his voice failed him. It was blocked by his heart, which was so thoroughly jammed up there he might not ever be able to speak again. Unable to keep Chris' hate-filled gaze, he locked them on the ever paling face of the love of his life, whom he had failed so miserably. He choked on a sob and crawled on his hands and knees toward her. He was about to gently caress her face when he suddenly felt himself telekinetically hurled across the floor of the attic, skidding on his side into the wall.

"You don't get to touch her," Chris growled. "Not after what you've done."

"Chris, enough," Perry admonished. "This was Barbas' doing. He was manipulating Wyatt for a long time now. He wasn't in his right mind."

Chris' dark gaze fixed firmly on his twin next. "Oh yeah? And whose fault is that? Who made it possible for a demon to do that to him in the first place? Oh, that's right - you. You with all your stupid secrets and lies."

Perry bristled. "Excuse me? You're seriously blaming me for this?"

"She only kept the secret of your sexcapade because you made her promise," Chris nearly yelled. "She wanted to tell Wyatt the truth, and if she had, Barbas wouldn't have been able to manipulate a damn thing. She and Wyatt could have worked it out because it was magically manipulated and completely forgivable, but no, you let your grudge against Wyatt and your lone wolf mentality make it impossible for her to do the right thing."

Perry moved to crowd his twin, stating with frightening control, "Back off Chris. You don't know what you're talking about. What happened between us and the decisions we made were between me and Casey. No one else. You're just pissed your so-called person kept something from you."

Chris laughed a dark and cruel laugh. "You had sex with her and didn't even realize she didn't really want you."

Perry punched him hard in the face, knocking his twin to the floor.

As the elder moved to keep going, Bianca grabbed his arms, whispering in his ear, "Baby, stop. He's hurting. You're all hurting, but this isn't the answer. You're letting Barbas win if you turn on one another now."

Feeling her hands on him, her breath in his ear, Perry instantly calmed, closing his eyes and basking in the sensation of having her back. He took a deep breath and nodded, letting her know he was better. When she released her hold, he took her hand for strength and looked down at Casey's still form. A tear finally fell from his lashes.

Molly was at Chris' side, putting her hands on his shoulders to keep him down. She gave him a sharp look as she told him, "Casey wouldn't want this."

The words deflated Chris. Staring into her hazel eyes he knew she was right. Casey would be furious at them for fighting. She had loved each and every one of them, and they all felt her loss.

Lifting his eyes to Perry, Chris saw his twin had a tear trail on his face and looked oddly young and broken. Chris suddenly remembered this wasn't the first time Perry had lost Casey. He'd gotten her back only to lose her again. It had to make the pain so much worse.

Next, he looked to Wyatt. Chris swallowed at the sight of the most powerful witch in the world sitting with his back against the wall, knees to his chest and arms covering his head as he sobbed. Heart wrenching, full body sobs from his impenetrable older brother. For the first time tonight, Chris remembered his brother was human and knew his pain was real and deep. He just still wasn't sure he could forgive him.

Having gotten his emotions more or less under control, Perry ended up being the one to go to Wyatt, squatting down next to his older brother. He'd never seen his sibling like this before. Showing such weakness and sorrow was something his Wyatt had never done. Not even when their mother died. It was in this moment he knew this Wyatt Halliwell was not the brother he'd known nor could he ever become him. This Wyatt loved more openly and deeply and felt intense remorse and grief. For this reason, Perry put a hand on his brother's back and when the man raised a red-eyed, devastated face to look at him, Perry offered sincerely, "I'm sorry."

"Me too," Wyatt managed to choke out.

The two men locked eyes then, an understanding passing between them. They were brothers. No matter what issues they may still have to resolve between them, at the end of the day they were family. They would forgive. They would protect. They would love. Family meant everything. Especially now.

Molly sharply gasped as orb lights filtered into the room forming into Lucky. The last thing she wanted was for the little boy to see his mother this way. She moved to try to block the body, but she wasn't quite fast enough.

"Momma!" Lucky screamed running toward his mother.

Chris' own pain and grief evaporated in the face of his son's. He rushed to his feet and captured the boy in his arms, blocking the child from seeing any more than he already had. He held the six year old tight in his arms despite Lucky's screaming and fighting. He whispered brokenly to his child, "I'm so sorry, Lucky. I'm so sorry."

The tiny frame was jerking with gasping sobs. As he started to cry so hard he couldn't breathe, the fight seeped out of him. Instead of resisting being held, he fisted his father's shirt, tears leaving moist marks in the fabric where his face was buried. Even though it was muffled, Chris could still clearly hear his son's voice rebuke, "You promised you'd save her. You promised."

Chris' face crumpled. New tears pricked his eyes and his heart broke. He feebly offered, "I tried, Lucas. I just . . . I couldn't. I am so, so sorry."

"She told me she loved me and would always be watching me," Lucky sniffled. "Then the man took her away."

Wyatt's head jerked to look at his nephew. He asked frantically, "Lucky, you saw your mom's spirit?"

The little boy nodded, wiping his nose on the back of his sleeve. "It's why I orbed here. I knew she . . . she had to be . . ." His face fell to painful loss, and he threw himself back into his father's arms unable to finish as he started crying again.

Molly's head whipped around to Wyatt, knowing what he was thinking. "Do you still have it?"

Perry, catching on, shook his head. "It won't work. Casey had to drink it too."

"She did," Molly said, looking hopeful. "She drank her vial before she died. If her spirit hasn't totally crossed over, we might still be able to save her."

"But a man named Clarence took her," Lucky said. "I saw him."

Perry's eyebrows went up. "Clarence? Clarence was the one to come for her?" He looked over to Wyatt. "He came for me. He's an Angel of Death, but he handles unusual circumstances. Wyatt, I think we have a chance." He hesitated before adding, "That is . . . if you want to drink the soul binding potion."

The Twice Blessed pulled a vial from his jacket pocket. Without hesitation he threw back the contents like one might take a shot. Instantly, he flashed magenta and an amazing warmth and sensation of wholeness spread through him. Then, his world spun on its axis, and he lurched forward as the full effects of the potion consumed him.

 _In your heart, in your head,_

 _in your arms, in your bed, under your skin_

 _Til there's no way to know_

 _Where you end and where I begin._

 _I wanna melt in I wanna soak through_

 _I only wanna move when you move._

 _I wanna breathe out when you_

 _Breathe in then I wanna fade into you._

Wyatt was swirling in a space made of memories and feelings. The first were from his prior life as King Arthur. Such as the first time he saw his wife. . .

 _King Arthur had promised King Leodogran assistance in a great battle, so he and his knight had ridden to the land of Cameliard. They were marching past the castle of Leodogran to meet the enemy when The Good King's eye happened over to the wall where his breath was instantly stolen as he saw a dark haired, dark eyed beauty watching the knights pass by. He realized she was King Leodrogan's daughter, Guinevere. She was by far the fairest lady of this or any other land, and he loved her instantly. When he won this battle, he would demand her hand as reward._

The Twice Blessed saw many happy moments. Great feasts among friends. Balls where they danced and jested with one another. Nights spent in each other's arms. He felt it all as though he had truly lived through those moments.

Unfortunately, with the good also came the bad. Such as the moment King Arthur had discovered her betrayal with Lancelot. Sir Mordred and Sir Agravain exposed the affair in order to break the round table. Arthur had known about it, but he loved Lancelot like a brother, and did not want to lose his most valued knight. He could understand why Lancelot would love her . . . anyone would be a fool not to. He didn't want to lose his wife either, and he feared if forced to chose she would leave him. His obligations as King forced him to be gone to other other lands more often than not. He could understand her loneliness driving her to another. Still, Mordred and Agravain had made the affair public. He could no longer ignore it.

" _For thine betrayal," King Arthur said, heart heavy, "ye both shall burn."_

 _Guinevere's face broke, her brown eyes melting as she stared hopelessly and guiltily up at him from her position on her knees before him. She did not protest her fate. His wife felt she deserved her punishment and would suffer it in silence._

 _Lancelot would not be so submissive. He immediately broke free from Sir Gawain and Sir Kay, fighting his way out of the castle and jumping onto a steed and riding off to freedom. His last words were shouted to Guinevere as a binding promise. "I shall not forsake ye, Beloved."_

Wyatt recalled it being a true statement. While Arthur had posted extra guards around Guinevere's post, where she was set to be burned alive, Lancelot had still managed to ride to her rescue. Arthur had been forced to declare war on his once best friend to redeem his honor. It had been during the foolish war he'd died.

Next, Wyatt began recalling special moments from this life and the love they evoked and nurtured. The moment Chris had brought Casey to the manor for the first time, and they met. How he thought she was really cool for a girl. Years of playing and laughing and vanquishing demons together. The time he taught her to whistle . . .

 _Eight year old Wyatt and six year old Casey were sitting in the summer sunshine on the steps leading up to the manor. They'd been working on the same task for nearly twenty minutes now with no success._

" _Just make your mouth a tiny circle then blow," Wyatt instructed._

 _Casey licked her lips before turning them into a circle. When she blew the only sound made was a rush of air. She adjusted her lips up and down trying different angles but still couldn't get so much as a squeak. After a minute, she stopped and pouted prettily. "_ Es imposible."

" _No it's not," Wyatt mildly argued. "You can do it. Here. Look how my mouth looks when I do it." He promptly demonstrated, whistling_ Mary Had a Little Lamb _. "Just make your mouth look like mine did."_

 _Casey took a deep breath and pulled her ponytail tighter, much like she did before going into battle with a demon. She made a tiny circle with her mouth and lightly blew illicting one high-pitched whistle. At the sound, her brown eyes went wide, a huge smile splitting her face. She excitedly threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tight exclaiming, "I did it!"_

 _For his part, Wyatt smiled happily hugging her back, thinking how much he loved being the one to make her smile. She had the prettiest smile he'd ever seen._

The moment he'd first realized he was in love with his little brother's best friend . . .

 _Casey and Chris were baking in the kitchen, laughing and talking about whether butter or shortening made better cookies. Wyatt was working on homework at the table trying to figure out why it bothered him so much when Casey nudged Chris' shoulder and batted her eyelashes at him with that dazzling smile of hers. They were best friends. It wasn't anything new except lately . . . Wyatt had been seeing her differently, and it was doing strange things to his equilibrium._

 _The girl he'd known for over a decade was starting to develop some womanly features, and his hormone addled body was reacting to everything she did anymore. Wyatt couldn't stop from checking her out when she left a room or feeling his blood head south when she wore a short skirt and tank top. He'd stare at her lips when she talked and find he had no idea what she'd said. It was terrible. He felt like a pig. She was his friend. Chris had a crush on her. Wyatt knew he should definitely not be having those thoughts about Casey._

" _Cookie, Leo Jr?" a teasing voice broke his thoughts._

 _Wyatt looked up to see Casey handing him a freshly baked oatmeal cookie. He frowned. "Chris doesn't like oatmeal."_

 _The young girl rolled her brown eyes, smiling. "I made them for you,_ Idiota _. They are still your favorite, right?"_

" _Yeah. I love them," Wyatt replied a warmth filling his chest. He smiled dumbly up at her. "Thanks."_

"De nada _," she replied, kissing him on the cheek._

 _Wyatt knew from the moment she handed him that cookie they weren't the only things he loved._

He saw countless nights where he orbed to her room to snap her out of a panic attack, usually ending up spooning with her on her bed until she fell asleep. He relived the moment he'd finally gotten the courage to tell her how he felt for her, knowing it was going to end in heartbreak because she loved Chris. The moment when she finally realized she'd picked the wrong brother . . .

 _Wyatt was heading into his room to change out of the dress clothes he'd been wearing for Molly's funeral when he spotted Casey coming up the stairs hugging herself. Even with her head down he could see her eyes were red and puffy and mascara had left trails down her face. Her hair was dripping wet and her black dress was clinging to her, soaked through. Her whole body was shivering._

 _"Casey?" He quickly took off his dress coat, rushing to wrap her up in it. He rubbed her arms, trying to get her at least a little warmer. "Where have you been? Where's your coat?"_

 _Instead of answering him, she let out a sob. Wyatt's dress coat fell from her shoulders as she jumped into his arms burying her face in his chest. Her grip on him was so tight he almost couldn't breathe._

 _He gently pried her away, frowning down into her face. "You're scaring me. What happened?"_

 _"It should have always been you."_

Wyatt continued to be flung around in their shared history back and forth between this life and the other until every single moment the two souls had shared together had been relived and refelt. As he drifted through the story of their love he started to not only experience his own feelings during those times but Casey's as well. How scared she'd been so often. The depth of her love for him. The pain and guilt she'd felt in her last moments. Just as Wyatt thought he might explode from feeling so much so intensely, it all stopped. It was done.

Two would become joined as one.

 _If I was just ashes and you were the ground,_

 _and under your willow they laid me down._

 _There'll be no trace that one was once two_

 _after I fade into you._

" _Papi_?" Casey breathed, staring in shock at the spirit of her beloved father.

The man looked as he had before the demon had struck him down. His dark hair was tightly curled against his head, brown eyes gleaming with unconditional love. As it always had in life, his smile shone brighter than even The North Star. "Hello my _Lucerito_."

She ran to him, throwing her arms around him and hugging him, filling the embrace with all the love and sorrow she'd been holding in since his death. Tears would have been streaming down her face if she still had the ability. As it was she closed her eyes, soaking in the feel of his comforting arms encircling her as he whispered calming words into her ear.

"I have always been with you, _mija_ ," he told her softly. " _Te amo_."

Casey pulled away, lowering her head as she commented miserably, "You must be so disappointed in me."

Lorenzo palmed her face, making her look up. "Never, _mija_. You have been through much, but still you keep fighting. For that I am so proud."

"I've made horrible mistakes," she argued. "How can you still call me _mija_ like I'm the innocent little girl you loved?"

Her father shook his head. "You are my only daughter. My love for you, it will never fade. Mistakes, _mija,_ are a part of life. Perfection, it does not exist. The best we can hope for is to always get better. You fall but you rise again. You learn."

Casey smiled appreciating having her father's comfort again. His love. At least in death she gained that.

"You have also given me a rather remarkable _nieto_ , eh?" Lorenzo said. "I see that boy and always he makes me smile. He has his father's wild spirit I think, no?"

The daughter laughed. "I think Lucky may get that on both sides."

Her father gave a hearty laugh, nodding. " _Creo que sí_. Ah, but is good. Life it is made of adventure. Stories to remember." His mirth faded, his expression growing serious as he locked gazes with her. After a moment he told her, "Your story has not ended, _Lucerito_ , so now, we must part again."

Casey blinked, confused. "What? I don't-"

"-Hello, Mr. Alvarez."

At the sound of the voice behind her, Casey's mouth parted open in shock. She looked to her father for confirmation of what was happening, but he only smiled warmly before greeting, "Hello, Wyatt. Is good to see you."

Surely it wasn't really Wyatt. He hated her. He had said awful things to her before she died. She was pretty sure he was being manipulated by evil to have done what he did to his family, but some of it was surely legitimate anger at her. He wouldn't save her now. Not after everything that happened.

"Casey," Wyatt softly said.

She was too afraid to turn around and face him. Too afraid of seeing the same hate and hurt consume the blue eyes she adored. Death was less painful than having the man she loved look at her like that.

"Be brave _, Lucerito_ ," her father encouraged. "Do not hide from love when it comes to save you."

At her father's words and the surety in his gaze, the young woman slowly turned toward Wyatt and felt warmth unlike anything she'd ever felt before fill her at the mere image of him standing before her. She felt whole for the first time in her . . . well, she supposed afterlife. He looked so unsure and guilty she wanted very much to wrap her arms around him and hold him tight, but she still wasn't corporeal. Instead, she took a step toward him, getting as close as she could without touching.

"I am so sorry," Wyatt told her, blue eyes blurred with tears.

Casey dropped her eyes to the floor. "You're not the one who betrayed us. Who ruined what we had."

"It's not ruined," he argued. "Not if you don't want it to be."

She winced, hugging herself. "I slept with Perry. How is it not ruined?"

"Because I don't care."

Casey's head whipped up at the statement. Looking at him, she could tell he was being honest, and for a brief moment she could feel his conviction, love and desperation as though they were her own feelings. Still, she couldn't dare hope. "Of course you care. I was unfaithful. With your brother. It's unforgivable."

"I forgive you," Wyatt firmly declared. "You were manipulated just like I was tonight. I know you love me, and you would never have done it in your right mind. I felt your emotions and heard your thoughts, and I know it in my soul. We belong together, and if you let me heal you, nothing will ever come between us again."

Casey frowned, confused. "Let you heal me? Is that possible? If so, why would I say no?"

The Mighty Twice Blessed dropped his head looking like an unsure boy. His voice was small as he answered, "After seeing how cold and cruel I can be, you might not want to be bound to me for all of time. See, I took the soul binding potion too, but the full effects won't activate until you're alive again to experience the merging. It helped you linger a while because when you took it the potion was trying to find your soulmate, but if you leave with your father, it will void the potion."

"You took the potion for me?" Casey asked, too stunned to think clearly. "After what I did?"

"Yes," he answered, finally looking up again. "I told you: I forgive you. I love you too much not to." His handsome face fell to guilt and fear as he asked, "Do you love me enough to forgive the horrible things I said and did to you?"

Casey smiled nodding. "Of course I do."

Wyatt licked his lips nervously before asking, "And you still want to bind yourself to me even after seeing my darkness? How easily I sway to evil."

"You are sunshine and warmth, Wyatt," Casey argued. "To me, you will always be those things. Even seeing what happened tonight I knew it wasn't really you. Not all of it. I am not afraid of you. I see beyond your title and powers to the man you are, and he is the best man I have ever known."

The Twice Blessed let out a shaky breath of relief, smiling through tears of joy. "Then let's get you home."

"Farewell, _Lucerito_ ," Lorenzo said. "Be happy."

Then, he vanished into the beyond.

Wyatt took a breath. "Ready? I have to warn you, it's going to be intense. Every moment we ever shared. Every thought and feeling we both had. We will share a telepathic and empathic link the moment you wake up. Are you sure you want this?"

Casey moved to put her hand as close to his face as she could and locked her brown eyes on his blue. "Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, I love you so much I want to just fade into you."

The Twice Blessed put his hand in front of her chest, and the golden glow instantly sprang to life. Her soul returned to her body, which was healed permanently of all previous damage. She would be the picture of health destined to live many decades more. Though, she was not as she was before nor would she ever be the same again. The moment her soul returned, it merged with that of another. Now and forever bound in every way.

 _Then I just fade into you . . ._

 _Then I just fade into you . . ._

 _Then. I. Just. Fade. Into. You._

 _TBC . . ._


	33. Something to Talk About

Thank you bunches to Anthony and weiliya for your comments on the last chapter. Reviews are what makes my writing world go round :) Bit of a filler chapter this one but necessary to tie up a few loose strings before the end. Got a little weird on me, though, since I'm in a bizarre mood. Hopefully, my silly thoughts aren't too out of place. The next chapter will be more the usual since it's the last one . . . yup, only one more chapter after this. Can you believe it? Anyway, rambling over. Enjoy!

Chapter 33  
Normally, it would have bothered Chris immensely not to know what everyone was talking about. When Molly started questioning Wyatt about the potion and Perry had hopped right on board the train of thought, Chris couldn't seem to fathom what they were so excitedly discussing. All he could hear was his son's gasping breaths. All he could feel or think about was the loss of his best friend and son's mother. The morbid pondering of what to do with the body. How to plan a funeral. How on earth he could raise their child alone.

It wasn't until Wyatt's orb trail darted up through the attic ceiling Chris became at all cognizant he'd missed something important. Something which had put a hopeful smile on Molly's face and a contemplative one on Perry's. Still, it didn't come together until the question broke from the mouth of his son.

"Uncle Perry, can he really save Momma?" Lucky shakily asked.

Perry immediately broke his grasp on Bianca's hand and moved to his nephew. He squatted down to the boy's level and nodded. "Yeah, Buddy. I think so."

Chris blinked, the fog of grief finally lifting enough to comprehend what he'd just heard. He whipped his head to look at his twin in hopeful shock. "The soul binding potion can still work? I don't . . . how . . .?"

Before he could finish the thought or Perry could answer, Casey's body took a shuddering breath then a moment later a weak moan could be heard. Color began returning to her face. Soon, her eyelids started twitching with the first signs of consciousness.

Lucky and Chris were both at her side in a flash. While Lucky hugged her, calling out to her in spanish, Chris palmed the side of her face. He implored the woman, "Please, babe, open your eyes. Everyone is waiting for you and loves you, so you come back to us, okay?"

"She's working on it," Wyatt's voice remarked from the other side of the attic having just orbed back. When everyone turned to look at him, he smiled brightly. "She's going to be completely fine. We both are. Her mind is just a little preoccupied at the moment."

Molly frowned, clearly not liking the sound of that. "With what?"

Perry grinned, answering, "Merging with Wyatt. They're bound for all of time now."

"Don't remind me," Casey's voice grumbled as she finally opened her eyes. She shot a smile at Wyatt, knowing immediately where he was in the room. She teased him, "I must be crazy."

Lucky threw his arms around his mother hugging her so tightly she almost couldn't breathe. "Momma! I was so scared and sad, and I didn't want you to go with Clarence, but I didn't know what to do, so I orbed to Dad, but then I saw you, and it . . ." He broke into tears unable to finish.

Casey held her child close, brushing his hair down with her hand and whispering in his ear, "It's okay, _Lucerito_. I'm fine, and I'm not going anywhere. I promise. I love you so much."

"I love you too, Momma."

The woman turned to Chris next, enveloping him in a tight hug. When he relaxed in her arms with relief, she kissed the side of his head. "Sorry I scared you."

"Don't ever do that to me again," he brokenly begged her.

Perry put in softly, "Me either."

Casey looked up at the sound of his voice and was on her feet a second later rushing to embrace him. Her face half in his chest she told him, "Thank you for coming up with a way to save me."

With the tiny woman in his arms, Perry edged a nervous glance to Wyatt, who didn't look at all jealous at their interaction, and was actually still wearing a huge smile on his face. Still, considering what had happened earlier the elder wasn't taking any chances and gently disengaged from the hug. He replied awkwardly, "Wyatt did all the real saving. I was just the idea man."

"Don't worry so much," Wyatt told his brother. "I forgave you both the moment I learned the truth about what happened and why. I know neither of you would ever purposefully hurt me. While I'm never going to be happy it happened, it's over and done, and I think it best we all try to move forward."

Casey nodded up at Perry. "He's really not jealous. Little sad but not jealous or angry. He also knows you're my friend, and I'm not about to lose you over what a demon did, so hugging me will not get an energy ball thrown at your head. Promise."

Checking with Wyatt who was nodding affirmation of what she said, Perry smiled and hugged her back. "Losing you once was bad enough. You have no idea how happy I am you're okay. I'm also really glad everything worked out with you two. That you're safe and happy."

Stepping back from the embrace, the latina edged a look toward Bianca before returning her attention to Perry to quietly question, "Looks like you might be getting a happy ending too?"

Perry broke into a wide smile, ducking his head and nodding.

Casey looked over to Bianca. She still wasn't sure what to make of the phoenix, or if she could trust this woman not to hurt her friend. She wasn't quite sure the woman liked her either considering her and Perry's past. Not knowing really where to begin to start a friendship with the former assassin, she told her, "I'm glad you're not evil anymore."

"I'm glad you're not dead anymore," Bianca returned.

They both knew from this instant, they may never be friends, but both of them would try for Perry's sake. Only time would tell if they'd ever be successful.

Shooing Perry out of the way with a smile, Molly took her turn next, pulling Casey into a hug. Tears moistening her eyes but not falling, the whitelighter emotionally whispered, "You are my best friend, you know. I don't know what I would do without you. I love you."

"I love you too," Casey sniffled. Pulling out of her friend's arms, she wiped her eyes dry. Then, looking as though she just remembered something, her eyes shifted between Molly and Chris, her face growing more excited each moment. She clapped her hands and opened her mouth to speak . . .

. . . only Wyatt was the one to excitedly say, "We have to get ready for the wedding tomorrow! I have a cake to make, and we have decorations to hang."

Chris' eyebrows shot up, eyes darting between Casey and his older brother with a mix of amusement and confusion. "What was that?"

"They're telepathically and empathically linked," Bianca explained. "It's part of the potion."

"Watch," Perry said. He pinched his older brother's arm only to have both Wyatt and Casey yelp and grab the same spot on their own arm. He explained, "Until they learn how to control it, they are pretty much sharing everything."

Casey suddenly paled not having realized the full implications of the soul binding until now. She turned to look at Wyatt. Horrified, she wondered, "So every stray thought-"

"-Yeah," Wyatt answered giving her a sympathetic smile, "but-"

"-No, I won't," Casey cut in. "Now, all I can think about is all the stuff I don't want you hearing."

Wyatt wrinkled his nose. "Did not need to know that about my brothers."

Perry and Chris exchanged nervous, questioning looks. When each realized the other didn't have an answer, they simultaneously shrugged and tried not to think about what Wyatt had just learned about them through their friend.

"-Now I want pizza," Casey declared with a frown. She raised an eyebrow to her boyfriend. "So, apparently through you I'll become a stress eater. Good to know."

Molly looked to the others in the room. "Did anyone follow that?" When everyone shook their heads, the whitelighter nodded. "Okay, glad it wasn't just me."

"I thought I would be better at controlling this," Wyatt said with a pout. "I have telepathy and I block out other people no problem. Why can I not differentiate between my thoughts and Casey's?"

Perry offered, "Because she's not just some random stranger, Wy. She's the love of your life. Your souls are literally connected. Things are bound to be a little jumbled for a while. You'll get used to it." He shot a reassuring smile to Casey, who was worrying her lip. "You both will."

"What the hell is she doing here?" Piper's voice cut through the air.

The Halliwell Matriarch was standing in the doorway one finger pointed at Bianca and a look of complete hatred and disgust on her face. On either side of her, Phoebe had a soft expression of happiness and Paige was rolling her eyes at her big sister. Prue and Leo were behind them frowning in confusion.

Bianca tensed by Perry's side and would have shimmered from the attic had the elder not read her intentions and grabbed hold of her hand. She edged him a displeased, anxious look but held her ground.

As a show of his resolve on the matter, Perry lightly tugged the phoenix witch against his side and slipped his arm around her waist. He locked his resolute green gaze on the fuming brown eyes of his mother and declared, "Mom, this is Bianca Bishop. My fiance."

Bianca sharply turned to look at him surprised. "Chris, are you sure you still want to marry me after everything that happened?"

"I second that question," Piper remarked with a snort.

Perry locked his eyes on Bianca and nodded, solemnly stating, "I don't need a soul binding potion to tell me we're meant to be together always. We've both done things we regret, but bottom line is, I love you, Bianca. I lost you once. I'm never going through that again." His expression became more unsure as he finished, "That is, if you still want to marry me."

"Yes," she answered, pulling him in for a passionate kiss right in front of everyone.

Lucky made a face. Wyatt folded his arms and looked so happy for his brother his face was sure to split in half from the strength and size of his smile. Phoebe's expression was similar. Molly put her hand over her heart and 'aawed'. Leo shot his wife a look knowing their son had found a love just as complicated and strong as their own, which made Piper reluctantly let out a breath and accept it with a thin lipped smile. Paige and Prue wore identical grins, with the latter shaking her head. Casey and Chris started whistling and clapping, laughing hysterically when Perry sent a rude gesture their way.

"There is a minor in the room," Wyatt teased when the heated embrace looked like it might never end.

Perry and Bianca reluctantly parted, but kept their hands entwined. The Elder looked to his mother and saw her give him a nod of approval. He smiled and turned back to Bianca, and quietly enough none of his well-meaning but sometimes pushy family could hear asked, "Courthouse? No reason to tempt fate again, right?"

"Agreed," Bianca whispered back with a smile. "The sooner I'm your wife the better in my book."

"Speaking of minors," Chris said looking at his son, "way past your bedtime."

Lucky whined rather impressively before trying, "Mom died today. Can't I stay up?"

Casey laughed. "Only in this family could a child use that excuse. And probably more than once." She held out her hand to her little boy. "Come on, let's go read our story. I feel like we're way behind, so maybe, we'll have to do two chapters tonight, _bueno_?"

The child beamed at her and took the offered hand, practically dragging her behind him through the room, out the door and to his bedroom. The whole way down the stairs and hall, the family could hear the child talking a mile a minute about how he couldn't wait to see what happened to Frodo next.

"So," Paige directed to Wyatt, "evil you kinda sucks." When everyone looked at her in either amusement or anger, she shrugged. "Just saying I'm glad he seems back to normal." She narrowed her eyes at him questioningly. "You are back to normal right? No urge to take over the world or kill your amazing aunts?"

Wyatt flushed, shoving his hands in his pockets looking sheepish. "No. I'm good. And sorry. Really really sorry." His gaze slid to Chris, who hadn't completely forgiven him yet. "I hope someday I can make it up to everyone."

Chris saw the expression on his big brother's face and something in him melted, giving way to sympathy. Wyatt had done horrible things. Said unforgivable things, yet Chris knew he would forgive him. Wyatt was his brother. He loved him always. Even when he did want to wring his neck. So, as a sign the path to moving forward was very much open, he smiled and gave a small nod.

Letting out a breath of relief, Wyatt suddenly burst out laughing. His arms went to his sides as he took huge, gasping breaths struggling to get enough air between laughs. He simply couldn't stop.

Phoebe asked through the side of her mouth, "Are we sure he's not still a little crazy?" Off Piper's fiery look, the middle Charmed One shrugged and gestured at her nephew, "Well, then you tell me."

"Tickle fight," Wyatt exhaled, catching his breath and sobering. "Casey and Lucky were having a tickle fight." He took one final big breath before looking hopelessly to Perry. "How long before we get control of this?"

Perry chuckled at the childish expression on his all powerful brother's face. "Don't know, Man. Sorry."

Leo frowned, clearly puzzling something out. His eyes drifted from Wyatt to Perry and then landed on Chris. He asked nervously, "Boys, what did you do?"

"Yeah, not that anyone is complaining," Prue added, folding her arms, "but does this have something to do with how Casey is suddenly alive and fine?"

Wyatt took a deep breath before meeting his father's eyes. He wasn't sure why, but he was suddenly horribly nervous, like he was seventeen again and had taken the truck out without permission. "Dad," His eyes sought out his mother's adding, "Mom, I . . . I took a soul binding potion. Casey and I did, so she couldn't move on, and I could heal her. I know it broke all kinds of rules, but I love her. I couldn't let her die."

"A soul binding potion?" Piper shrieked. "You are permanently bound to her for all lifetimes? A woman who cheated on you in two lifetimes? This time with your own brother? Slept with both of them? What were you thinking?"

"Huh," Paige remarked, "Casey had sex with all three of your boys. That's like a player's holy grail."

"Paige," Phoebe griped pulling a face. "That's disgusting."

Prue wrinkled her nose nodding in agreement.

Leo trying not to cringe and failing put in, "Can we not talk about my grandson's mother that way, please?" He turned to his wife next putting a hand on her shoulder to calm down the mother on a rampage. "Piper, Wyatt's a grown man, and you know how much he and Casey love each other. How about we listen before rushing to judgement?"

Piper gestured sharply for her son to explain.

"What you saw," Wyatt began. He paused, flushing and looking guilty. He swallowed nervously before continuing, "What I made you see . . . it wasn't what it looked like. I mean it was. It happened, but not because Perry and Casey wanted it to. Well, I guess you did?" Wyatt asked Perry who had his face buried in his hands now. The Twice Blessed waved off his own question. "He didn't know we were together, and Casey was under the effects of whitelighter dust and Barbas. In any case, it was magically manipulated, and I forgave them both, and we all just want to move on. And yeah, okay, she and Chris also slept together - hence Lucky - but that's ancient history. Chris is marrying Molly for crying out loud. So, yes, Mom, it's unconventional and awkward sometimes, but I made my choice, and I don't regret it, and I hope when we get married you support us."

Chris' head whipped around to look at his brother. "Married?"

Wyatt tilted his head to the side as though listening for something. Then, he broke into a brilliant smile. He turned to his brother. "Okay, so I had been talking hypothetically, but Casey's been eavesdropping a bit through our new telepathic link, and she just said sometime in the spring." He looked around the room like he'd just won the lottery, happiness and excitement pouring from him. "She actually wants to get married. Knowing her, we'll probably wind up in Vegas, but still . . . she's going to be my wife. This is incredible."

"Congrats," Perry said with smile. "You two are going to be great partners."

Chris grinned at Wyatt. "I'm happy for you. Also, watching her freak out every step of the way is going to be hilarious, especially since you'll feel it too." When Molly smacked his arm, he laughed. "What? It's true. Commitment phobe meets hopeless romantic in a tangled web of telepathy and empathy. Comedy gold."

Molly rolled her eyes. "Ignore him. It's going to be wonderful."

Piper moved to her oldest child, putting her hands on his face. "As long as she always makes you as happy as you are right now, you have my blessing. I suppose, she's been part of this family practically her whole life, so we might as well make it official, right?"

Leo turned to Chris and Molly, his smile matching the radiant one on his eldest son's face. "First, I think we have a different son to watch walk down the aisle. Are you two ready for the big day tomorrow? We are still having a wedding tomorrow, right?"

Chris took Molly's hand, looking lovingly at his high school sweetheart. "I've been waiting to marry this girl since I was sixteen. Nothing is going to stop us from having the perfect wedding tomorrow."

Piper clapped her hands together. "All right people, you heard my son. We've got a wedding to prepare for. Wyatt, get Casey and meet me in the kitchen. We've got food to prep and dishes to get cleaned and ready. Paige and Bianca, you work on the crystals and defense wards, no demon is going to gate crash this party. Prue, you take the bride to your place and make sure she's well rested for the big day and my son doesn't try to sneak a peek at his fiance before the ceremony. Phoebe start a schedule of hair and make up for tomorrow. Leo, work with Perry on the handfasting ceremony until he's comfortable. Christopher, to bed with you. After the stressful day you need rest. Now, move people."

Everyone scattered. No one dared challenged the authority of the Halliwell Matriarch. As they went fluttering about to prepare for the big event, Piper watched with a satisfied smile. Everyone was okay. More than okay by the looks and sounds of it. While she acted tough, stern and unforgiving when it came to her children's partners, it was an act. She just wanted the best for her boys. Truly, she knew they each had found remarkable partners, who suited them well. She just wanted them to be happy and loved. It's all she ever wanted for her children. All three of them.

TBC...


	34. Marry You

Oh my gosh, it's finally here. The last chapter! Thank you soooo much to everyone who ever took the time to review this story. It motivated and inspired me. Truly.

Chapter 34

Molly woke up in the spare room at Prue and Andy's house to a shower of rose petals being orbed on her head. She laughed, sitting up and taking a double handful of the petals up to her nose to take in the sweet sent from the silky gift. Once she's breathed in the wonderful aroma, she spotted a note on her comforter with her fiance's loopy handwriting, and her smile grew so wide she thought her face may split in two.

 _Molly,_

 _Afraid I can't take credit for the surprise this morning. It's a story I heard from the day my parents got married, but I couldn't resist copying it. After all, they're going strong after all these years, so we might as well start our big day the same way, right? Plus, I know how much you love roses. White - just like the corsage I conjured for you during our prom date. I knew that night this moment would happen for us, and I can't wait. See you at the end of the aisle, Gorgeous._

 _Love,_

 _Chris_

Molly wiped away tears, shaking her head at herself. She had no chance of keeping any mascara on if she was crying already. She supposed it didn't matter. She could be acne riddled, frizzy haired and in a garbage bag, and she knew without a doubt Chris would still want to marry her. It had taken a long time for her to understand that, but she knew it without a doubt now.

The door to her room banged open to reveal a horde of Halliwell women followed by Casey, who had a mischievous smile as she carried in a large plastic bag. As Phoebe and her girls started unloading tackle boxes worth of makeup and hair supplies and Prue hung up Molly's freshly steamed gown on the back of the door, Casey took a seat on the edge of the bed and removed plastic cups, orange juice and champagne.

"Mamosas?" Molly asked excitedly.

Casey winked. "Can't have the bride getting too nervous before the big moment." Then, she rolled her eyes and looked up at the ceiling as though listening to something. Off her friend's questioning look, "Wyatt would like to request I make sure you don't over do it. He says drunk brides are not attractive."

Molly laughed. "Fair enough."

"I actually can't stay long," Casey informed her. "I just came to drop off the bubbly and check on you. Piper needs a little more help getting the food prepared. I also need to put the finishing touches on your cake."

The whitelighter's smile faltered. "Oh. I thought you would help me get ready."

"Oh, don't worry," Casey said with a grin. "I brought an excellent substitute."

"Molly?" a tentative voice questioned from the doorway.

It was a voice Molly had listened to from a distance for seven years, but she would know it no matter how great the time or distance between them. Her heart paused in hopeful shock as she turned around to find her mother standing in the doorway. A few grey streaks lined her hair now, but she looked as warm and loving as she had before death had ripped Molly away from her.

The whitelighter turned questioningly to her best friend. "How is this possible? What about magic exposure?"

"It's a twenty-four hour gift," Casey explained. "From our favorite neurotic elder. She'll think it's a dream at the end of it, but at least this way, you get your mom for your wedding."

Tears in her eyes, Molly flew off the bed and ran into her mother's waiting arms. She hugged the woman fiercely, burying her face in the woman's shoulder much like she had when she was a little girl. Voice cracking she told her, "I have missed you so much, Mom."

"The man in the golden robe said you were an angel," Joanne Vettle said in awe, stroking her daughter's hair. "I always knew that I think. Deep down I knew you were too good to keep all to myself."

Affected by their emotions, Phoebe put her hand to her heart, her brown eyes welling with tears too. She ushered her daughters into a hug, trying hard not to imagine how she would feel if she ever lost one of them. The little family watched the reunion in silence, giving the pair time.

Reluctantly Molly pulled back from her mother and turned to Casey. "Where is Perry? I need to thank him."

"He's at the manor helping get it ready," the witch answered. "He and Wyatt are on decoration duty, and last I checked with my darling fiance-" Casey stopped herself and pulled a face. "He just slipped that right in there. _Aye_ , this is weird. Anyway, last time I checked with Wyatt, the two of them were goofing off with the helium in the balloons. I'll give you one guess who the instigator was."

Molly laughed. "I think Wyatt may get him to loosen up yet. I guess I'll have to thank Perry later."

"Yes, later would be good," Joanne agreed. She smiled brightly. "After all, you've got a wedding to get ready for, Sweetie, and I have dreamed of doing your hair for it since you were a little girl. So, are you ready to start?"

The whitelighter was beaming. "My best friend is alive and happily in love with my other friend. I'm marrying the only man I have ever loved, and I have my mom for my wedding. I couldn't be more ready or more happy."

Casey hugged her tightly. "You deserve all the happiness in the world _, Mariposa_."

000

Chris looked at himself in the mirror and took a deep, nervous breath. Today was the day he married the love of his life. He had no fears about committing himself to Molly. He did have a great many fears about all the many things that could go wrong at the wedding. He was a Halliwell after all. Very seldom did their wedding days go off without a hitch.

"Hey," Leo greeted with a proud smile from the doorway. "Wedding day jitters setting in?"

The son quickly responded, "No." Off his father's knowing look, "Okay a little. Not about Molly though. Just . . ."

"Possible magic mayhem?" Leo guessed. When his son gave a shrug and nod, he gestured for him to take a seat on the bed and joined him. He locked understanding eyes on Chris, a smile never leaving his face. "Chris, believe me, I know all about magic ruining a wedding. It took your mom and I three times to actually make it through a wedding, but in the end, it didn't matter. And no matter what happens today to make things a little unconventional, as long as you and Molly love each other like I know you do, you'll make it through too."

Chris gave him a smile and pulled his father into a hug. "Thanks, Dad."

A small explosion interrupted the moment. Father and son looked at each other and jumped to their feet in a panic until they heard Lucky laughing. It abated their fear but not their curiosity as they moved across the hall to the little boy's room.

To their surprise Bianca was with the boy. She was wearing a soft yellow sundress, her hair done in a long braid with little white daisy clips interspersed in it. She immediately picked up on their entrance and sharply turned to them, the smile she'd had for Lucky vanishing.

Chris noted his son trying very hard to contain more laughter as he actively avoided looking at a scorch mark on the floor. He also didn't miss the fact his son's tie and cumberbun were missing from the chair where he'd set them out for Lucky this morning but weren't being worn.

"What happened?" Leo asked, gesturing to the burn mark on the rug.

Bianca calmly answered, "Demon. I had to hit him with an energy ball."

Lucky snorted, his eyes dancing with mirth as he looked up at the phoenix, who subtly slid him a small smile, her own brown eyes not quite hiding her amusement.

Chris slowly folded his arms looking between the two. "Demon, huh? Got through the crystals and the wards?"

Lucky nodded enthusiastically. "I accidentally moved one of the crystals, and Auntie B wasn't done with the wards and sensed him coming and vanquished him right away. She's really cool like that."

Leo shot a questioning look to his grandson. "Auntie?"

" _Sí._ Last night she and Uncle Perry-" The little boy noticed the woman shake her head and changed his words, "She's gonna be someday. She and Uncle Perry are super in love and stuff."

Chris was still eying the two suspiciously. "Uh-huh. Let me guess, the demon happened to be holding your tie and cumberbun, the two parts of your outfit for today you've been whining about wearing for weeks?"

Keeping a completely straight face, Bianca responded, "Lucky got nervous when the demon shimmered in and dropped them on the floor. I didn't see until after I'd made the vanquish I'd accidentally destroyed those two articles of clothing. I'm really sorry."

"You know what?" Chris said, throwing his hands up. "I don't care. It's just clothes. As long as everyone is safe, and I get to marry Molly today nothing else matters. Nothing can ruin this wedding."

000

"I think I ruined Chris' wedding," Wyatt anxiously declared.

Perry, hovering up by the ceiling hanging lights, looked down at his brother and smirked. "Why? Did you turn evil and try to kill him again?"

The Twice Blessed made a face at him. "Not funny. You of all people should not be joking about that."

"As I see it," Perry argued, "I have survived evil you twice. I'm an expert, which makes me the only one who gets to joke about it."

Ignoring his little brother, Wyatt dropped to all fours looking on the floor here and there, ducking his head under the furniture they'd moved out of the way in the conservatory to make room for all the extra chairs. He then started crawling down the aisle between said chairs, looking under all the rows of folding chairs.

The Elder quirked a brow, slowly levitating himself back down to the ground and cocked his head to one side as he regarded the most powerful witch in the world looking frantic. Putting two and two together, his mouth parted in a cross between shock and amusement. "You lost the rings didn't you?"

"No," Wyatt argued. "I temporarily misplaced it."

Trying very hard not to laugh, Perry held up a hand. "Let me get this straight. Chris gave you the rings because he didn't want Lucky to have them until the ceremony for fear our nephew would lose them, and it turns out he probably would have been better off giving them to the six year old."

"Are you going to help me or just mock me?" Wyatt questioned. "I've already got Casey freaking out in my head about it, and feeling her nerves and anger on top of my own guilt is not helping."

"Are her thoughts in spanish or english?" Perry wondered.

Wyatt tilted his head. "I guess I never noticed before, but it's kinda spanglish." He waved his hands to get back on track. "It doesn't matter. What matters is our brother is going to kill me if I don't find them. Are you going to help or not?"

The Elder rolled his eyes. "You remember you're a witch, right?" Off his sibling's confused look, he dryly suggested, "Just call for them."

A sheepish smile spread across Wyatt's face. "Oh. Right." He held his hands out in front of him palms up. "Rings!"

Swirls of orb lights appeared above his outstretched hands depositing one dark grey men's band with a straight line of diamonds down the middle and a delicate engagement and wedding ring set with one plain silver band harboring a single set diamond and a second band lined with tiny diamonds welded to it. Neither appeared any worse for the wear, and Wyatt immediately pocketed them with a relieved breath.

At the sight of the rings, Perry smiled covertly fiddling with the golden band on his own finger.

000

The conservatory had chairs lined on both sides of the room, filled with the Halliwell Family both alive and deceased, The Winchester family, Molly's mom and childhood friend, Brian, as well as, Chris' highschool friends Kip and Jessica. Bianca was looking rather nervous in her chair on the aisle next to Phoebe, who kept giving her questioning looks.

In front of the stained glass doors leading to the garden was the old flower covered arch saved from Paige and Henry's weddings where Chris stood waiting in a black tux for his beautiful bride to come down the aisle. He kept his hands clasped in front of him, and looked the picture of nerves. Perry, refusing to wear elder robes, was in a brown suit and white dress shirt behind him, smiling at his twin. Several times he leaned over to whisper, "Bend your knees." Or "Breathe."

Up on the landing of the stairs, where the railing was lined with beautiful white flowers, Lucky was dressed in his tux (sans tie and cumberbun) holding the rings on a white pillow and bouncing nervously. Casey, dressed in a baby blue dress with her hair thrown up in a french twist was standing behind her son telling him to stand still before he lost the rings. Of course as she said it, she shot a teasing smirk to Wyatt. The Twice Blessed, arm entwined with hers looked quite cute in his tux, blushing at her reminder of his earlier flub.

Behind them Leo, in the same tux he'd worn at his own wedding, took the Bride's arm as the wedding march began playing. He smiled at his soon to be daughter-in-law. "You ready?"

Off her nod, the procession began.

As Lucky made his way down the aisle he spotted Mary Winchester waving at him with a smile and blushed, nearly tripping over his own feet. When he reached his father's side his uncle winked at him, giving him a big smile, and he smiled widely back.

Casey and Wyatt both were wearing dreamy looks on their faces as they came next. Arms linked, sides lightly touching, it was clear they were thinking about how soon enough it would be their turn to become man and wife, and how for the first time in a long time neither of them had any doubt or fear about that fact. It was also obvious when they reached the end of the aisle they were reluctant to let each other go, as though the few feet apart was too much to bear, and they stared lovingly into each other's eyes to compensate.

Up to this point, Chris had been resolutely staring at a spot on the floor too nervous to pay attention to the ceremony. Only when Wyatt leaned over to whisper in his ear that he absolutely needed to look did Chris venture to move his gaze toward the aisle. Lips parting in awe, the sight of Molly literally took his breath away.

The whitelighter had her hair curled and fixed in a fancy updo, a few strands dangling around her delicate neck. The dress had a sweetheart neckline, with a lace bodice hugging and accenting her chest before flowing out into a simple a-line skirt with patches of intricate flower embroidery on a sheer overlay. At the sight of her soon to be husband's slack jaw and the telling sheen to his eyes he would never admit to, Molly's face broke into a radiant smile, any self-consciousness disappearing as she focused on Chris.

Perry cleared his throat before beginning, "We are gathered here today to unite two souls as one." Looking between the couple he asked, "Do you Christopher Halliwell and Molly Vettle join us here of your own free will to acknowledge the eternal bond shared by both of you?"

Locking eyes, taking each other's hands and smiling, they simultaneously answered, "I do."

"Now, please, share your vows to one another," the elder directed.

Chris started, "Molly, when Wyatt convinced me to take a girl I had never met to prom seven years ago, I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined he'd be introducing me to the love of my life. Only, the moment I saw you, I knew in my soul you were the one. I know being with me hasn't always been easy. Life has thrown a lot of challenges our way, but through it all, you have been my constant, my love, my strength my comfort . . . my heart. I love you, and I promise to never stop."

Tears in her eyes but her smile irremovable, Molly took a breath before she took her turn. "Chris, before I met you, I was lost. I didn't know who I was or where I belonged. You taught me to be strong and confident. How to love not just you but myself too. You have made me feel safe, special and loved every day since the moment we met. My promise to you is to never take our love for granted, and to show you how much I love you every day too."

"Here before witnesses," Perry said, "Chris and Molly have sworn their vows to each other." Using telekinesis he brought forth a golden cord from a stand beside him, wrapping it around their wrists, tying the couple together with it. He continued, "With this cord I bind them to those vows."

Molly and Chris both recited, "Heart to thee. Body to thee. Always and forever, so mote it be."

Everyone gathered repeated, "So mote it be."

"I now introduce," Perry said, taking some liberties, "Mr. and Mrs. Chris Halliwell."

As the newlyweds shared a passionate embrace, Perry didn't fail to notice his Great Grams quirking her ethereal eyebrow at him for his ad lib. He shrugged with a grin, and she rolled her eyes through a smile at him, making him laugh.

Looking around him, Perry couldn't have been happier than he was in this moment. His family was alive. They were thriving all around him. His twin, which had thrown him for a loop at first, was now probably his best friend. Someone who understood him in a way no one else had ever quite managed. Seeing Chris marry such an amazing, sweet woman like Molly, who Perry had grown to truly care for too, was amazing.

Then, there was Wyatt and Casey. No sooner had the ceremony ended then the two were back in each other's arms. The Twice Blessed was behind her, arms wrapped around her shoulders, bent over to rest his head on hers, which she had rested against his chest. Happy didn't cover those two. Seeing them now, it was like the pair had been incomplete and only now were truly whole. There was a sureness and contentness about them, which told Perry these two were truly born to be together. They were going to have many blissful years ahead of them.

He couldn't help but chuckle as he spotted his Uncle Henry helping Lucky sneak frosting off the cake. Lucky. God he loved that kid. When he first met the boy in the past, it had been crazy and surreal and scary but also so incredibly wonderful. Being his dad, even for a little while, was one of the best things Perry had ever experienced. Lucky was a great kid with a big, important future ahead of him, and Perry swore he would do anything to help his nephew. Always.

Perry felt his heart swell at the sight of Bianca. His wife. Not wanting to steal Chris and Molly's thunder, but not wanting to take any chances with waiting, they'd snuck off to a courthouse with a conjured license and were married last evening. Wanting to tell someone, Perry shared the news with his nephew, knowing the kid could keep a secret. The boy had been so genuinely happy for him, it melted Perry's heart. He really, really loved that kid. Maybe someday, he and Bianca would have one like him.

After all, his mission was finally over for good. The future was safe. His family was safe. Now? Perry Halliwell could dream about what his life would be from here on out. Perhaps it was an elder's foresight, but he could see it all so clearly . . .

Casey and Wyatt would get married in Vegas on a whim just as Wyatt predicted. The young woman didn't want to plan anything, afraid she'd lose her nerves and drive the man she loved crazy in the process. It was family only. Her father was allowed to be summoned for the event. It was the perfect way for the couple to start their lives together.

Molly and Chris would have a little girl named Hope next year. A dark haired beauty with her mother's hazel eyes and kind, gentle spirit. She would be the darling of the family, a natural peacekeeper with powers all more whitelighter focused.

A few months later, Bianca would give birth to their son, Matthew. The first male born Phoenix in one hundred years. Extremely powerful in both dark and light magic, Perry and Bianca would fight to keep the Phoenix Clan from influencing him, training the boy themselves to assure he followed the Halliwell path of light. The boy idolized his older cousin Lucky, wanting to be just like him, and in many ways, they were very similar. Matthew struggled with his dark heritage from time to time, but Lucky could always bring out the light in his cousin and best friend.

Their other child was a little girl they named Grace. Not as powerful as her brother, she was firmly fixed in the light, her magic more fully formed from her father's elder magic. A bit of an introvert, she was unusually bright, always seeming older than her years. She was her father's daughter, gifted in keeping secrets and bending truth to protect those she loved. She was also able to see changes in time, sometimes helping Lucky when the timelines in his memories got confusing for him.

Lastly, Casey and Wyatt were finally able to have their only child, Cristina. The reincarnation of Melinda Warren, the little girl possessed all three charmed powers from birth, but never let the weight of her destiny bother her. After all, she had her mother's wild spirit combined with her father's sunny disposition. She would grow to become a force of nature who loved her family and was fiercely loyal and protective. Just like the uncles she was named after.

Perry smiled as it all played out in his mind's eye. For the first time since he was fourteen years old, he knew without a doubt the future was going to be wonderful. Or perhaps, because they were Halliwells, it would just plain be . . . magical.

THE END

Now . . . what would you all like to read next?

A. Future Consquences - Rated M - Chris Perry made a dangerous enemy. Chris Halliwell will pay the price.

B. Hunted - Rated T - Supernatural crossover - Chris finds himself the target of the worlds best hunter when the woman he's been seeing turns out to be Dean's daughter.

C. Superfluous - Rated T - Growing up, Chris feels like his family doesn't need him, and they certainly don't know him. They see the ghost of a man he'll never be, and it may drive him to cross a line he never imagined crossing.


End file.
